Interview with Elma Purkovic, an immigrant from Bosnia Background and Moving to the United States I was born

in Foca, Bosnia in 1982. I lived there until 1992 when the war started, and I had to move. My family and I moved 37 times in 4 years; we were refugees in own country. We finally settled in 1996 in Sarajevo when the war was over. I finished high school there and then moved to the US in 1991. We lived in Chicago for two years. In Bosnia, in high school, I studied English, but only British English. I knew basic things when I came. When moving here, we got help from Catholic Charities. An interpreter helped with social security, green card and doctor appointments. However, these are not always available. If they dont show up, you are on your own. When moving, a big problem is youre homesick. You come with nothing pretty much; only one suitcase. We didnt have any family in Chicago. We didnt where we were going. Everyone handled it differently. I was excited to be here. My dad speaks English. His grammar and accent are not that great, but he can communicate; he doesnt need an interpreter. He learned Spanish and English. My mom refuses to speak. It is really hard when you dont know anyone. It feels like you have fallen from sky. It is a new world. You need to have the personality to keep going to learn English. My parents still live in Chicago. I got married and moved to St. Louis. I have been here since 2003 and cant see living anywhere else. This is my home now. Little Bosnia and her Culture I live in Afton. I only go to the Bevo area for the bakeries and food. I dont know if you have ever had Bosnian bread, but it is the best bread you will ever have. That is the only time I go to Little Bosnia. I dont practice my culture as much now. My daughter and husband do speak Bosnian. My husband was born there as well. I want my daughter to know where I came from; she is in the third grade now. I will help her if she would like to learn more Bosnian, but this is her home; The United States is her home. She was born here. I will not force it on her because this is her country. It is hard to keep it up with her growing up in the United States. Little Bosnia is wonderful to keep families close. But, it sets immigrants back because they are not willing to learn English. They wont do more for themselves. Wherever they go, they use their hands to communicate. If you want to fit in, if you want to get a better job, if you want to participate in the US, you have to learn English.

Learning English and the US Culture I started learning English right away in Chicago within one week. In 3 months, I was not fluent, but I could understand basic writing and communication. I learned very quickly. I learned mostly at work and with people I worked with people I knew every persons experience is different. Some watch TV. I learned talking to people. I learned phrases. Never word by word. Phrases and sentences are best. Learning English on a scale of one to ten can I say 15? English was very difficult. Grammar and spelling was the hardest. I dont know who made up the grammar and spelling, but, oh boy, I would like to have a long conversation with them. Bosnian is the same as Spanish. You see it, you write it and you say it. There isnt any different spelling. I can speak very well; I love to talk. I still make mistakes with grammar and spelling. Slang is silly sometimes. My sister is in Chicago. We were making fun of that the other day. Soda is pop there. It is funny for me to hear different dialects. It is fun, but it is hard to understand others sometimes. The culture difference depends on the life you had where you came from. There are different cultures in every country; like three or four different cultures. I grew up in Bosnia, and nothing seems unusual here. Its just the language that is the hardest part. Everyone is always in a rush here. Life is on schedule. If you wake up five minutes late, the whole day is messed up. That is the only thing that I think is hard. Other People Learning English I know many people that arent trying to learn English. They try to bring all of their culture and language here, but you cant change the city; the city changes you. You have to adapt to the city where you are staying. You dont have a choice. You have to adjust. There are so many that dont know English, and I am so upset with them. There are young people that arent even trying. I am very, very sad about that. There are people that are my age that arent even trying. I get very upset. This country is your everything. You have the opportunity to do anything; if you put your mind to it, you can do anything. You can do anything you want here, and I really believe that. There are people in their 30s that arent even trying, and it makes me upset because they are letting themselves not have these opportunities. I dont know why people dont want to learn English. I have a hard time understanding why. I feel you have to. You belong here. If you dont want to learn English, you dont have to, but go back home. If you move here, you have to learn English. People say its hard. If its that hard, why are you here? Go back home. It is my opinion; you have to learn it. I cannot see myself living here and not knowing English and not driving.

My happiness has definitely changed since I have known English. At first in 2001, I would get into situations where people look at you differently. People would talk to you but you dont understand. All you could say was ahuh and nod your head. I was uncomfortable. I didnt have friends. I was eager to learn because I wanted to fit in. It made me feel like I want to fit in. There are some situations where people look at me differently, and people told me I was taking their job. I just have to keep my head up and keep going. Other than cost, people dont want to learn English because they are shy. I understand a lot of people feel embarrassed to talk. They think if they mispronounce a word, a person will laugh. Then you just have to tell them how many languages do you speak? I know three. Shame on you for laughing. I speak Spanish also. You cant be embarrassed; you can speak your mind. Ask a person for a word you dont know, or find another word. Sometimes I ask them to use simple English or tell them I am a foreigner to make a joke. The more languages you know, the better person you are. You cannot be embarrassed for learning a second language. It is only good for you; it cant be a negative. They have to put themselves out there and find the time to learn English. In any grocery store or any mall any store anywhere you go, you can find a Bosnian person. They can all count money, say hello and goodbye and know basic English. Benefits of English English has helped me get a better job. It helps me learn the culture. I am proud that I am capable of speaking two languages. Most people will say I cant believe you can speak two languages. Not everyone can learn it. It gives me an opportunity to say what I feel. The most important thing is that I can help my daughter with her homework. She doesnt need to get it from other people. I can help her understand her homework. How do people who dont speak English help their child? I really dont understand how people living here that dont speak English cannot want to help their children. Some have interpreters at parent teacher conferences. I would be embarrassed. Learning Other Languages I wanted to learn Spanish because Spanish is similar to Bosnian. We have the same accents. I love it. For some reason, I picked it up easier than English. You read it as you see it. I like that language. There are not a lot of Spanish speaking people here, so I am kind of losing it. I learned it a lot faster than English. My sister teaches Spanish. In Bosnian, when you translate word by word, it would not make sense. Grammar is from the end to the beginning. Spanish and Bosnian grammar is pretty much the same. In order to learn English, you have to think in English. If you carry a dictionary with you, you cannot learn like that. I dont know the rules, but I know if it is correct. I am a little different than the usual Bosnian. I say what I think.

English and the US Many want to bring Bosnia here. But why do you want to do that? If you want to live by those rules, go back home. They want pre-war Bosnia. But that doesnt exist. I really hate when people want to go back to that time. You have to adapt to what we have now. You dont belong here if you want that. This country gives opportunities to anyone and everyone who wants it, who wants to study, who wants a job, who wants to have a better life; you can get that in the United States. Whoever says differently is lying; they are lazy. This country can give you opportunities. Whoever doesnt agree is just lazy. I was hungry. I was barefoot. I slept in a forest with nothing. I didnt have anything to eat for a couple for days. I dont want that to happen again. People think things are free. They think someone is going to come help them with their life. Thats not a life. Nothing is free. I did have a hard life; I was only 10 years old when the war started. My teenager years were during the war where I had nothing. You have to learn English to get a better life here. I came here and got a job, I got a house, I got a better life. Staying home and feeling sorry for yourself is not going to be helpful. I feel bad for the war, but maybe it had to happen. Sometimes, I am thankful for these things for helping me to be the way I am now. You have to learn English to get a better life.