BATAJNICA
I grew up in a small town called Batajnica on the outskirts of Serbia’s capital. During my childhood, the country I lived in changed its name and the shape of its borders four times. I moved away 12 years ago, but despite a new railroad and a highway, Batajnica remains just the same as I remember it. The supermarket on the corner. The crazy guy at the bus stop. Grandma’s garden that is now mom’s garden. It’s the place where I first fell in love. Where my dad towed us behind the car on a sled during snow storms. Where we played soccer with the soldiers during the bombing of ’99 and graffitied the school walls. Where we rode bikes down to the Danube. Where everything floods after the rain. Where I’m still afraid to walk the path from my house to the school at night.
This is my home.
