Dear Friends,
On this Independence Day, I’m going to share with you the story of Karina, a dear friend that most of you have met through the Generation Ukraine activities. It’s a story of getting out of your comfort zone and growing. A woman who “cultivated her own garden” with the values of her country’s identity, history, culture and, most of all, language.
Karina is an IT expert specializing in technical project management for NGOs (yes, she’s on GU’s as well). However, after reading Minimalism: Essential Essays she prefers to introduce herself based on what she loves rather than her job title. And she loves doing many things, first and foremost, reading. Thus, she defines herself a reader.
A feminist. A dog and cat lover.
She has good reasons for these. She grew up reading books. She’s inspired by female energy. Dogs and cats sometimes are better than humans. But she does not stop there; every now and then, she evolves into different hobbies eras, now she’s in gardening (and I endorse!).
Karina was born and raised in a city close to Zaporizhzhia, studied Language and Literature in Kharkiv, and now resides in Lviv, which, as she mentioned, is her favorite place to be in Ukraine, with regular visits to Kyiv. Since the full-scale war started, she has had her ups and downs. She feels drained and overwhelmed; there are days she ignores reality. Concentrating on her own life brings calmness in the consistent anxiety the war brings.
Surviving in good shape mentally and physically is what she needs to do, what all Ukrainians should do. Focusing on her own life and taking care of herself does not come alone. Karina invests her time and resources to fight for Ukraine her own way, and this brings her relief.
She does that by donating money to the army: when you live comfortably, you probably have something to spare for your country. By raising awareness.
Since she is not on the frontline, she has the time and energy to support cultural decolonization. Frontline soldiers also request this via social media videos, saying that they must communicate in the language they know the best to fight efficiently; those in a safe space should make the switch: quit Russian and start speaking Ukrainian.
Karina has been a cultural decolonization advocate for many years. She was raised in a Russian-speaking city, studied in another one, and now lives as a Ukrainian-thinking and speaking person in Lviv. Karina had a wonderful Ukrainian language teacher in school, a great narrator, dressing up with traditional accessories, embodying the Ukrainian culture, who made Karina love the language and literature. Karina, later in her life, when she was studying in Kharkiv, participated in the Dignity Revolution when the movement blossomed. She was there at the demonstrations led by Serhiy Zhadan. Unfortunately, she was also there when the annexation of Crimea happened and witnessed the Russian flag waving on the local authority buildings, in a square full of blood and drunk Russians celebrating. It was then that she realized that she wanted to make the shift. To quit speaking Russian.
She made it when she moved to Lviv. In the beginning, it was challenging. She started by speaking Ukrainian in public places and slowly ended up not only speaking but also thinking in her language. The secret of this success is not hidden in the “have to” part but in truly loving the Ukrainian language and literature. She would recommend this path to anyone who wish to follow her example: start by finding something you love in the Ukrainian culture.
And out of love should be all. Her advice to the women who stayed in Ukraine is to live your life. That’s what Russians do not want you to do. Don’t feel guilty. And most importantly: train in technical medicine to protect yourselves and others during attacks. To the women who left, raise awareness, be the person who crushes misinformation and Russian propaganda. Be kind to yourselves and the people around you.
As a friend of Karina, I must admit I admire her lifestyle, her energy, her passion for her country and the things she loves. I would encourage you all to subscribe to her telegram channel for her book suggestions. Soon, we will also announce a very exciting project we’ve been working on.
Till then, remain resilient and take care of yourselves. Happy Independence Day, all!
Book recommendations:
- The Museum of Abandoned Secrets, Oksana Zabuzhko
- Ukraine: A Book of Essays by Intellectuals in English
- Behind the Scenes of the Empire: Essays on Cultural Relationships between Ukraine and Russia, Vira Ageyeva
- Cecil the Lion Had to Die, Olena Stiazhkina
