Why my childhood letters are important to me – Alma Aganovic

Alma Aganovic says her childhood letters which she wrote to her friend when they lived in Sarajevo during the Bosnian War are special.

Alma’s story features in this week’s The Mirror’s Instagram project, #PeopleMove.

The project highlights the stories of those seeking sanctuary in the UK.

Alma fled Bosnia in 1993 with her mother and brother as medical evacuees to the UK, during the war.

“These are the letters I wrote to my friend when we lived in Sarajevo during the war. I was just 15 when it (war) started. One minute we were planning a weekend out and then, low and behold barricades were being put up. It was scary.

“I have a whole lever arch file full.

“Her neighbour and my mother used to work together, so they would give us each other’s letters as we lived in different parts of the city.

“We kept writing even after I left for England in August 1993, then we switched to email. We met after ten years and copied each other’s letters.

“There was a protest and a couple of shots were fired. It was scary. It happened so quickly, similar to Ukraine, it all started in one day.

“Mum said we wouldn’t be going to school on Monday, we missed nine months of education then the teachers started teaching children locally, in nearby buildings.

“Sarajevo is surrounded by mountains, there were men on the hills that we were hiding from. It quickly became unsafe, we felt exposed.

“We couldn’t get into the city, so accessing basic rations became difficult. We filled the freezer but they started cutting the electricity, so we had to eat the freezer food. After that we survived on rice and pasta.

“My parents worked throughout the war. The currency was cigarettes; they didn’t lose value.

“The year 1993 was the year of hell for me. I hated it. In April 1993 my dad was killed in a head-on-collision when a car was driving in the wrong direction to avoid a sniper.

“On 30th July 1993 my brother, who was just 11 was involved in an accident which saw his jaw crushed, the bones shattered. He was due to have surgery in Bosnia but there wasn’t electricity for six hours continuously for them to perform it.

“We were flown to England as medical evacuees. He had to gain weight before the operation. He was in hospital for three months fighting infections.

“We settled here; I completed my A-Levels and graduated from university. I have a partner and twin girls. We often visit Bosnia; mum kept our flat.

“I’m still very bitter that I lost my teen years. The war cost me the best years of my life. Time is one thing you can’t get back,” the sad 46-year-old Alma narrated.