In June 2012 was my graduation day in Algeria. The greatest gift my mother gave me was a gold square necklace (18k yellow gold) with my grandfather’s picture on it. I was extremely grateful to my mom for the gift. When she surprised me with this beautiful necklace, I felt excited and sad at the same time. Sad because this present reminded me of my lovely grandfather and all the best moments together. He always taught me good things about life at an early age. He did not only treat me like his granddaughter but also as his best friend. He passed away when I was 15 years old. In addition, I felt excited because I felt that he is with me all the time. This gift is very important to me because it is like my best friend, especially when I moved to America. In America, I do not have friends to talk or to share my sadness. I am always alone. But I have my lovely necklace and I share all my feelings with it. I consider it like a person. This gift from my mom reminds me of all of the things that I miss in America, like the most admirable person to me, and the importance of family.

– Farida Bedja

Relationship:  Im/migrant Im/migrant