When Moses and his friend arrived at the Dignity Centre Nicosia one day last week, they settled onto the sofa and set up a game of Scrabble. As the board filled, their pace slowed. They leaned back, searching for words.
“I love this game because it makes me use my brain. I did maths at school and studied engineering in DRC. I play scrabble a lot these days to learn new words. It keeps my mind busy,” said Moses. “If there is one thing I’ve realised since being here in Cyprus”, he continued, “it’s that you need to put the past behind you and focus on the future.”
Then, after a moment’s pause, he added: “At the same time, you have responsibilities back at home so you can never entirely forget.”
Forgetting is seldom an option for anyone trying to navigate their way through the asylum process in Europe. And this after a long and harrowing journey through an unfamiliar and often unwelcoming environment.
Although each person fleeing conflict, disaster or poverty faces unique challenges, the solidarity and mutual support that communities give each other offers a safety net of sorts. But it is not always enough. Moses arrived in Cyprus in 2022, and it is only now that he is being called for a his asylum interview.
Such a long period of stress and uncertainty takes its toll, and in some of his darkest moments Moses would come to the Dignity Centre for solace. On this day, however, he was in a cheerful mood, keen to talk and share a moment of laughter. Setting his scrabble pieces aside for a moment he spoke of his deeply-held beliefs, friendship, the importance of mutual respect and the benefit of calm.
When the scrabble game resumed I stayed watching for a while. The discussion we’d just had was what makes days at ‘Dignity’ special, and it is moments like these that make you keep coming back to volunteer.
– Jessica, volunteer, March 2025.
