Immigration stories, laughs and resources for immigrants, refugees, transplants. Sentimental Refugee. Contribute your thoughts to this online magazine.

Immigration problems, issues and concerns: an online magazine for immigrants and refugees. Immigrant cartoons featured.



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	Fai. USA via India. Matt. USA via Mexico. More interviews.

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ETHNIC GIFTS!

CONTRIBUTE YOUR THOUGHTS AND EXPERIENCES TO THE CONVERSATION

Use the form bellow as a starting point. Feel free to add to these questions and manipulate them. We are looking for the authentic experience and, since everyone is different, it could be hard to anticipate with a blanket question a wide variety of temperaments and characters. So use it, abuse it and make it your own. We do thank you, in advance, for your contribution.

Also feel free to answer only those questions that you feel comfortable with.

If you have any questions or brief feedback comments you can write the editor@sentimentalrefugee.com.

1. First things first: give us a notion of where you came from (which country) and what prompted you to immigrate.

2. What are the major differences you noticed in the new culture, as opposed to the old one? (in the way people talk, act, interact with each other - in line at the grocery store, on the freeway, in school, at work, at home etc.).

3. What were the problem areas for you in terms of adjusting? (did you think people were aloof, or they smiled too much, or they hated your accent, or you didn't like the way your pet iguana was treated, or you thought the idea of a pet rock was so ridiculous that you felt like you could become a millionaire overnight with your brilliant business ideas, but your investment bankers didn't see it... you get the idea).

4. What were / are the great discoveries you've made about yourself or about the world in the new country? Perhaps you discovered the self-help movement, or a new way to mow the lawn, or the value of creating to-do lists, or learning to appreciate the immense value of being able to speak freely.

5. In practical terms, give us examples of differences or similarities in these areas:

- love

- friendship

- family (old family, new family)

- school / education

- dating (did you even have the concept when you moved to the new country?)

- career / work

- God / spirituality (any changes?)

6. Extra comments (use as much space as you need).

7. And just to make sure we have them:

- your name (mandatory, but not necessarily your real name. If you feel uncomfortable with revealing your identity you can use a pseudonym)

- your email address (so I, the editor, can contact you in regards to your contribution and its possible publication to the website. At that point we can discuss whether you want to have the email revealed publicly or you prefer to be contacted through this website. Needless to say, we do not share email addresses with anyone).

Thank you for your contribution!

FEATURED BOOK:

Disappearance of the Outside: A Manifesto for Escape

by Andrei Codrescu
Taking into account his own exile from Stalinist Romania, as well as the plights of such greats as Garcia Marquez, Breton, Dada, Kundera, and Milosz, Codrescu issues a call for those living in a free society to reach beyond a benign reality founded in technology and commercialism by tapping into their imaginations and striving for a better, evolutionary existence.

Check out our Sentimental Refugee Arts and Fun Store featuring cartoons, illustrated stories and traditions from world cultures!

"Job Interview" Cartoon: what happens when Mr. Naheed applies for a job in the United States

"A life without love is like a year without summer." Illustrated Swedish proverb.

From Russia: Vodka and Caviar. It's Party Time! Click here.

From Japan: An illustrated love story about a beautiful wife. Click here.

FEATURED INTERVIEW:

Sonia Choquette. (first generation born in the USA)
"The first thing to say about the experience of an immigrant is that people are like a tree whose roots have been cut off. Fortunately the human spirit is regenerative but only if you acknowledge that you have suffered a major psychic wound, even if you move under the best of conditions. So you can build new roots." Read more...