Museum Display

Artifact #1: Airplane tickets and postcard

            I’ve had a passion for travel since I was a little girl. I remember being a kid and going overseas to Serbia to visit my grandparents. Traveling was just a part of our family life. My father had a sense of adventure and love of nature that he shared with my brother and I. He would take us to parks every weekend, and since we lived in California, he would take us to the beach, where we could walk along the rugged coastline. After moving to Spokane we still went hiking as a family and took quite a few road trips. This all fed my own sense of adventure and I dreamed nonstop of traveling on my own. Last summer I took a two-month solo trip to Europe, which was incredible. And just a few weeks ago, over spring break, I went to Ireland with a few friends. Travel is something I plan and budget for constantly. It’s essential for my well-being and happiness. It’s my number one passion.

Artifact #2: Photo of me and my family in Serbia, 2007

            My parents moved to the US from former Yugoslavia in 1986, a year before I was born. I grew up speaking Serbian at home, eating Serbian food, and going to a Serbian church. My childhood was permeated in Serbian culture even though we were living in the US. Once my brother and I started school, we began to lose our language a bit. As of now we are much more comfortable speaking English than Serbian. I basically have the vocabulary of a Serbian child right now, although I still understand it fluently. All my grandparents and one of my two uncles still live in Serbia. I saw them for the first time in six years last summer. They mean a lot to me and I hate that airplane tickets are so expensive because it makes it difficult to visit often. It was really tough on my parents in the beginning to be so far from everyone, especially in the 1990’s when NATO was bombing Belgrade, the city where my family lives. I’ve grown accustomed to having a distant family because it’s all I’ve ever known, but the Serbian culture will always be a part of me, and my family is always close to my heart.

Artifact #3: Orthodox Christian Icon

            I’m not religious but I grew up going to an Orthodox Christian church. My parents were never particularly religious either, but I think going to a Serbian church in Los Angeles helped connect them to a community. It was always more of a cultural thing for us, to go to church and connect with our roots. In Spokane we went to a Greek Orthodox church, and that community became our extended family. They were a support system in a place where we had nobody else. I grew up dancing at their Greek Festivals and celebrating holidays with that community. The Orthodox church will always be a part of my life because of this.

Artifact #4: Anne of Green Gables book

            I remember the exact day I got this book. I was 9 years old and had a passion for reading. One of my favorite things in the world was to go to the bookstore with my mother. I remember the excitement I felt when she told me to pick out a book. I saw the redheaded girl on the cover and knew this book had to be mine. Anne of Green Gables was the first series that truly made me feel a passion for the written word in a way I had never felt before. I read all eight books in this series by the age of 11 and I knew I wanted to be like Anne. It was the first time I had connected with a fictional character so deeply. I honestly owe my passion for writing and reading to this book, because it was this book that made that passion come alive.

Artifact #5: My first digital camera

            My dad bought this camera for me the year I left for college. My dad is an amazing artist who has a natural eye for photography. He always had a camera in his hand when we were growing up, and I would constantly sift through his photographs in admiration. I always had a vague interest in doing my own photography and I enjoyed playing around with my film camera, but it wasn’t until I got this digital camera that I started to really experiment with it and fall in love with the art. I used this camera up until 2013, when I finally invested in something a little more advanced. My obsession with photography goes hand in hand with my love of travel. I am mostly drawn toward landscape photography, and have recently started working on more portraiture and cityscape as well. As an avid reader and writer, I find that photography is a great tool for me to step outside my head a bit. It helps me appreciate the beauty around me.