I was born in Cherkasy, Ukraine, on Sept.19, 2003, 11 years before Russia forcefully annexed Crimea and 19 years before the full-fledged invasion that began last February. I moved to the United States at the age of six, and I have very fond memories of my early childhood, which are now incredibly bittersweet with the knowledge that no Ukrainian child can experience what I did all those years ago because their childhood is being stolen from them.Â
The war has been something that has weighed incredibly heavily on my heart in the last year because I feel very connected to my homeland. But Ukrainians have a strong, unbreakable spirit, which is one of the many things that has been highlighted by this brutal war, and the country has come together in some truly amazing ways in the last year, which fills my heart with hope and pride.Â
Finding joy and happiness in such a terrible time is difficult, and it feels difficult as someone who immigrated to America so long ago, feeling guilty that I am not there and I cannot do more. But I am incredibly thankful that I feel so connected to my roots, and the most important thing that I can do as a Ukrainian-American is to use my voice to talk not only about the war but the beautiful country I was born in.Â
Cherkasy is located about three hours away from the capital city of Kyiv, on the Dnipro River. That river is where I would go swimming as a child with my grandfather. He would take me as often as he could, on every warm day. My mom worked full-time and my dad was already in the States, so my grandparents basically raised me during early childhood. He’d take me to the beach and let me play in the waves for as long as I wanted, building sand castles with me and making sure I never waded in too deep. We’d always get ice cream too, even if grandmother told him that he couldn’t spoil my appetite for lunch. When I think of my childhood, one of the first things I think of is that river.Â
Ukraine is an incredibly beautiful country. Greenery everywhere, ancient cathedrals and churches and stunning wildlife. There are so many happy memories I have, and many of them are related to the outdoors–lakes, parks and forests were all places my family would frequent, and everything is so close by to the city that pretty much anything my heart desired could be done in a day trip.Â
Every summer growing up we would vacation to the Black Sea. Crimea is one of the most beautiful places that I have ever seen in my entire life. There are mountains by the sea, and in my opinion, that is one of the best combinations nature has to offer. On that beach, I had the best corn on the cob I’ve ever had in my life. There were many beautiful hiking trails and coves and so many more things that I never got to explore because I always thought I would get to keep coming back forever. It never felt like I was going to run out of time on those beaches until I did.Â
I have many fond memories from my childhood in Ukraine, and it pains me to think that the children growing up there now have to worry about air raids and rolling blackouts, not sledding at the park or snail races with their summer friends. The war has taken so much from all of Ukraine’s citizens, and I hope that by sharing my positive memories, I can bring a new perspective to some people who have only heard about Ukraine in the news, from a political and economical perspective.Â