Fadi Haddad grew up in Syria entertaining his family and community on the traditional Middle Eastern string instrument known as the oud.
But nowadays, in suburban Melbourne, the refugee's performances are limited to lounge-room singalongs with his sister Zeina.
Fadi Haddad says he once expressed himself through the oud but, with no-one beyond direct family to enjoy his mastery of the instrument, he feels empty.
His sister says it is a feeling shared by many Syrian refugees, who appreciate Australia but struggle with the linguistic and cultural challenges of integration.
"There's a lot of things missing. We're searching for the missing things -- the friends, the happiness, everything."
Fellow Syrian refugee Norma Medewar has also observed the pattern.
And with the help of six like-minded women, she has launched an online and hard-copy magazine entitled 'Beloved Syria'.
She says it is aimed at addressing the issue.
"I met many families here who came here after the war, and they all said the same, that they feel lonely here, that they feel lost."
The first objective of the publication is to connect Syrians in Australia and create a functioning community.
Norma Medewar says the second is aimed at Australians, an attempt to educate people around the similarities, instead of the differences, between Australia and pre-war Syria.
"We have same population in Syria, 23 million, Australia the same -- I'm talking before the war. And also diversity. We came from different ethnic and religious groups in Syria."
Ms Medewar delivers presentations to a range of Australian community groups in an attempt to promote the magazine and educate people about the reality of her homeland.
"Syria is a secular country. Yes, people in Syria are very devout and religious. We are very devout in the same time we are inclusive."
She says it is important that Australians understand there is far more to the country and the people than the horrific images of war the country is so often associated with now.
"They just know that we are refugees, that maybe we are poor people, or we are not educated or we don't know what's going on around us."
Ms Medewar says Fadi Haddad will feature on the cover of the second edition of Beloved Syria in an effort to connect the community with both each other and its past.
"The magazine is to remind Syrians that we are proud people and we don't want them to forget where you come from, because, if you forget your roots and where you come from, then you will be lost."
