Moja Jelena - Jugoslovenka

People ask me about my background every time I meet someone new, because they've never heard of my name before. I reply: "Yugoslavian". The standard response is: "I've never heard anyone say that, the country doesn't exist, what are you"?
My second response is: "Bosnian", because that's what I identify most with, a cultural mix, that I was raised in. 
That answer triggers another set of questions to almost force me to pick one of the three nationalities. And so I explain my Serb roots but preface that I was raised as Yugoslavian and will only identify as such. 24 years ago I was plucked from what was once a happy childhood, so I hold onto that, and tell my little chickens that they're my little half Yugos, which they proudly identify as (the other half is Italian but that is an easy one!)

"Oci su mi more Jadransko
Kose su mi klasje Panonsko
Sestra mi je dusa Slovenska
Ja sam Jugoslovenka"

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Ovo je danasnja objava na fajzbuku moje kcerke Jelene. Ponosan sam i sretan sto razmislja ovako. Da prevedem:

Svaki put kadsretnem nekog novog, zbog mog imena koje nikad nisu culi, pitaju me ko sam i odakle sam. Odgovoaram: "Jugoslovenka". Standardno komentarisu: "Nikad culi da iko tako odgovara. Ta zemlja ne postoji. Sta si ti?" "Bosanka" odgovaram tada, jer to je sa cime se ja najvise identifikujem, kulturni mix u kome sam rasla.
Ovaj odgovor potice novu seriju pitanja da odaberem jednu od tri nacije. Tada ja objasnjavam svoje Srpsko porijeklo ali isticem da sam odgojena kao Jugoslovenka i da se tako i identifikujem. Prije 24 godine sam izbacena iz necega sto je bilo sretno djetinjstvo, i drzim se toga, i svojim malim pilicima objasnjavam da su oni "pola Jugosloveni" i oni se s ponosom tako identifikuju. (druga polovina je Italijani, ali to je jednostaniji dio).

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