A folder full of letters

On the table lies a heavy, black folder. Every colored tab covers a booklet of letters: -Woningbouw_, the bank, the municipality, health insurance. “It was always the same: first we had dinner, then the papers came out. If you are a status holder, you are expected to arrange everything yourself. The process never fails: the letter is in the envelope, the envelope is opened, the letter has been anxiously looked at, “I don’t understand this'', and the letter is put back in the envelope. Often people think the envelopes are extremely important, so over time stacks of opened envelopes with unread letters inside accumulate. At that point the overview is completely lost. But how can you pick up the phone knowing your Dutch is not up to par?”

Dick, her husband, has always been unconcerned when it comes to forms, folders or letters, and easily picks up the phone upon spotting irregularities. Ans translates the letters to comprehensible Dutch. “I seem to have these antennae in my ears: ‘they don’t know what this word means, this is simply too difficult’. The vocabulary in formal letters is not everyday Dutch, although the content is extremely important. That is what makes it so challenging to read these letters. Although, sometimes, I can get slightly impatient, especially when people have been here for a longer period. I may think: “You should know this by now”. But then the thought immediately pops up, imagine if I had gotten this letter in Farsi - I would be totally lost.”

Without someone like Ans, statusholders often fall into old habits and social roles. “You do not want to be a refugee forever. I never use the word “refugee”, because when you are here, it means the whole process is in your past. You want to look forward. That is why I always talk about ‘our friends’.”