When Omar Sabuh came from Syria to Yugoslavia in 1969, his reason was simple: he wanted to graduate from the technological university. But fate had an additional plan: in the dorm he lived in, Omar met Lenka Ugrinovska – and fell in love, got married, you get the gist. But Omar returned to Syria, Lenka stayed in Skopje, and their descendants spread throughout the world. Partially because of it, Darin – Omar and Lenka’s 17 year old grandson – now has uncles and aunts across the world who generously offer couches and guest rooms to stay in.  

This year, I wasn’t part of the selection process, which meant I didn’t get a chance to meet Darin before our conversation for this profile. In cases like those, the kids I talk to usually need some time to relax before we can dive into family histories and similar, deeper topics. But it seems to me that one of Darin’s main traits is honesty – so he didn’t need any warming up. He just started sharing. 

He shared thoughts that weren’t always easy. When I asked him about his brother Teon (who turned 7 a few months ago), Darin openly reflected on his early feelings of neglect. Teon was born when Darin was in fifth grade – a turbulent period even without the addition of a new member of the family – and Darin recalled that he first thought “What is this kid doing here?” But that early jealousy very quickly turned into curiosity, and later into care, so Darin already knows that the goodbye with his little brother will be the hardest of all of them.

Darin wasn’t always so open about his feelings. In middle school, he didn’t fit in his class and mostly kept his thoughts to himself. He listened to music and wrote down what he felt to help him process. But at the suggestion of his dad, he went to a summer camp in eighth grade. “The food sucked and we were 15 kids to a room, but once I came back to Skopje i had a beautiful friend group that talked about everything.” So when he started at Orce Nikolov, Darin started talking – honestly and openly, even with folks he doesn’t know all that well. 

These days Darin is getting ready to go to Norway. He works as a bartender and is starting to say goodbyes, including to his aunt and her dog, Zoe. He’s already in touch with some of the kids who will also go to Norway. (This year, at UWC Red Cross Nordic, we have two students and a professor!) He’s thinking about what’s next – he’s interested in Spain, but open to any options. And most of all, he’s talking: with Gurra and Marija, who already graduated; with Vasko and Ana and Andrej and Bogdan and all the other students from our national committee; with his parents, who are both worried and thrilled; and with Teon, who he’ll miss a ton. 

Bobo Stankovikj
July 2024