Hi!
I try to follow my gut. And now everything inside me screams:
- Talk about Ukraine! Talk about Ukraine! Take all your words and throw them into this silence.
My voice is just the voice of an ordinary woman. I wish I could do more. I wish… I wish… Anyway, I am here and will try to be louder. How? At the moment, I don’t know. Let’s summarise what I do, and maybe some new ideas will fly to me, or you will bring them.
I started posting regular daily news overviews about Ukraine on X (or Twitter, or whatever). It is a summary of key news and reports I read. I try to be neutral and don’t be too optimistic or pessimistic. But what if you are not on X? I have a BlueSky. Maybe I should copy the summary there? Oh, I call it #warcoffeedaily.
I visit exhibitions, listen to lectures, read books and magazines about our culture, and share it as I want you to learn that Ukraine has a lot of people and things to be proud of. For centuries, our genius was stolen or killed. It is the right time to start talking about it.
I write tweets with an honest hashtag #Iamnotaprofessor, and sometimes I share info on Instagram. Maybe I should write letters about my findings from time to time?
I travel wherever I can in Ukraine. My goal for these travels and introducing you to our culture is straightforward: to show what we are fighting for. Pictures, videos, and letters are flying to you from every corner. That’s good. It seems that many can see my travels (of course, not as many as possible).
What else? I write a war book-diary, but it is for future generations.
Right now, all I want is to break this silence. After our victory, I will probably do the same, as it would be great to talk about Ukraine until my last breath. A self-proclaimed ambassador whose heart has the shape of the map of Ukraine.
Also, I’d like to ask you for any ideas on breaking this silence. Your comments are precious. I read everything; I may not always answer, but unfortunately, I am only human.
It might happen (and it’s ok) that you are not interested much in Ukraine. So, I will do my best to raise this interest. I might fail, of course. But, please, read my letters. I put the part of my heart in them (yes-yes, this heart with the shape of a map of Ukraine). Share my letters with the people you know. Spread the word about the country where millions of hearts beat in tune with the anthem of a desired victory.
Ukraine is disappearing from your news, but I will do my best to keep it in your heart as long as possible.
Strong Ukrainian hugs,
Yara (or Yaroslava)