Two artists share their stories of the personal connections and memories they have of their homes through the exhibition Something felt, something shared. What are the connections and relationships that we build with our homes, and what story can they tell about the people who once lived there? Kalya Ward and Gabrielle Amodeo share their experiences and personal connections.

"Suddenly there was emergency everywhere ... students themselves were divided over ethnic issues, we heard that in some schools students were killing each other. We heard the military were killing students. We could hear gunshots everywhere, we could see people injured, blood everywhere."

- Doris Niyonsaba, former child refugee from Burundi, Africa.

By definition the word "miracle" is often used to; characterise any beneficial event that is statistically unlikely but not contrary to the laws of nature, such as surviving a natural disaster ... survival of an illness diagnosed as terminal, escaping a life-threatening situation or 'beating the odds'.

In the case of Doris Niyonsaba and her family their story sounds like a miracle of survival, one where they beat all the odds. You see Doris comes from Burundi and like Rwanda, Burundi has endured civil war and genocidal conflict between Hutu and Tutsi since the 1960's.

Little is known about the Burundi community living in New Zealand. Doris Niyonsaba and her family would be M&M's, that's "minorities within minorities" as far as our country's Pan-African communities are concerned.

When you look up the Republic of Burundi online you find out that it's; one of the five poorest countries in the world with one of the lowest per capita GDPs of any nation in the world. The country has suffered from warfare, corruption and poor access to eduction ... According to the Global Hunger Index of 2013, Burundi has an indicator ratio of 38.8, earning the nation the distinction of being the hungriest country in the world in terms of percentage.

But growing up in the tiny country that looks like a slice of cake sitting between the Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania and Rwanda, Doris remembers a childhood full of rich, cultural experience. Burundi is also known as the heart of Africa, covering an area of 27,834 square kilometers. It's a region of lakes and valleys, lush and beautiful, rich in resources. By all accounts Burundi should not be poor…

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details