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| Shevchenko Park, March 27th, 6:30 PM |
Dear readers,
I love blogging and sharing things with you but it's been hard lately. Not hard to actually sit down and write but, in a way, hard to justify the posts. I tend not to write about politics on here, share my own political opinions, or get into any "who's right and who's insanely evil" discussions. Interview offers that turn up are usually turned down, because everyone wants "the view from the ground" and my answer is lame, something like this:
Went downtown last night and there was nothing to report; a handful of police in normal uniforms, candles and flowers near the Lenin statue, lots of young couples out on dates. No angry mobs, no Molotov cocktails, no war. Came home, waited for the news to load, and wow, suddenly some newspaper in Kyiv or London or New York or Canada is saying that yep, 100% sure war will come (or worse, they hope it comes) tomorrow. Then I feel like a big idiot: did I miss the memo? was there a town hall meeting? maybe a secret handshake that communicated this kind of info? a Facebook update from Yatsenyuk? did Putin ride into town atop a tank?
Obviously a super-boring answer. Those foreign correspondents who show up for a day or two manage to find vastly more exciting things to say. Still, that brings me to the whole point of this blog: to share those little, ordinary things. What the park looked like yesterday. Something funny a student said. A strange new food in the supermarket. An unusual Ukrainian superstition. If I wake up and see an armored convey rolling down the street, you'd better believe that's going to be my opening sentence but so far (thank God) there's nothing like that in Kharkiv.
There are many talented bloggers here in Ukraine who focus on politics on all sides of the spectrum (like this blogger, this blogger, and this blogger, just to name a few). Also, as you've noticed, pretty much every single news agency in the world is churning out Ukraine-related news 24/7. If you want that kind of info, really, it's everywhere... except maybe here.
The Why
I don't write these entertaining little posts because I'm unaware of what's going on out there.
I write them because I am aware.
There's so much negativity out there right now.
Not just Ukraine- it's Venezuela, the missing plane, the mudslide in Washington, your problems, my problems, it's a long, long list.
The point is: bad things are all around and I don't want to focus on them here. The world is waiting to see what will happen; I'm waiting with you too.
This tiny internet plot is supposed to be a happier place and the seeming current global scarcity of happiness makes happiness even more valuable. I've always believed that many of you felt the same... that yes, it's bleak right now and yes, maybe more terrible things will happen tomorrow but for a moment, let's take a break and not focus on that. As I share these basic, routine things with you, it helps me be more grateful for them. Maybe it helps you hang onto hope too. A hope, if not for the present, then at least for the future. If you've been reading this blog because you're interested in eastern Ukraine and eastern Ukrainians and not just recently gained a cursory curiosity in the media's much-hyped and bestselling "Crazy-Shit-in-Eastern-Europe-and-Russia-Version-2.014", then maybe it helps you remember what you felt about this place and its people way before this all started, a reminder of what originally captured your interest. Or maybe Ukraine just popped up in your sphere of awareness and you want to read beyond the scary headlines everywhere.
But this is what another part of my brain is always shouting in the background: are cat passports and zoo fundraisers really that important now? Parks? Holidays? Those are so trivial- people have died! dodgy annexations have occurred! Hello, Katherine, what planet are you on?! The rest of the world is calling Ukraine dry kindling! If you're not outraged, you're not paying enough attention!
So... yeah. Blogging these past few months has become a battle between guilt at displaying any shred of normalcy and the desire for honest posts. Shame for not knowing more and a reoccurring urge to avoid the quagmire of finding out more. Sadness at seeing so many other talented bloggers no longer here and a sense of obligation to them to try to fill some of the empty space in the Ukraine blogosphere.
I know that most of the posts on this blog are light-hearted and I intend for them to be that way. It's not in spite of the current situation but rather because of the current situation. So many great guys are already out there with political posts that I'm purposefully choosing to stick with what I know: blogging as a female expat, a student of languages and a teacher of languages, a cat momma, a lover of parks and the Kharkov zoo, a tea drinker, and a city explorer.
As always, thank you for your readership : ) I appreciate you and hope you'll stick around!
It's a really strange/interesting place to be at. I felt this during the various political uproars in Russia, but at some point life must go on (especially if a lot of the story is just over-inflammatory rhetoric). I'll keep looking forward to your posts, no matter what topic you choose to go with!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Polly : ) I'm looking forward to hearing more about your upcoming travels!
DeleteThanks for linking to my blog. I can see you've been having some similar responses to the ones I've been getting. "But you're in Ukraine, tell us about politics". "Yes", I say, "but I went to a new burger bar and the architecture was a complete disaster and I thought it was worth writing about."
ReplyDeleteAll I can say is, keep up your great work and reporting the everyday which carries on regardless.
When I read your "Fake Heritage, Slow Fast Food, a Glossy Magazine and a Book" post, it felt like we were coming from the same place.
DeleteI think Kharkov is safe from Royal Burger for now... for the moment it's only McDonald's and Burger Club (the latter quite possibly being worse than Royal Burger, if you can believe it!).
I think many expat bloggers have pondered questions like "Should I make my space only a cheery reflection of the world? Should I include the negative? How do I manage to balance both the things I love *and* the things I loathe about my new home?" The difference, of course, is that your case is much more extreme than most due to the delicate situation of Ukraine at the moment and the fact that you are experiencing events that most of us can not imagine.
ReplyDeleteThis is your space; you can record your experiences as you like! I have loved your posts about reindeer herders, park statues, and how milk comes in bags at the supermarket. And I'm equally on the edge of my seat (er, keyboard) when you mention the nerve-wracking possibilities of a potential move. You make a different corner of the world come alive for me, and for that I'll keep reading :)
Hola Cassandra! Yes, it's definitely a tricky road to navigate even when things are normal. As a reader, I appreciate honesty from authors and try to do the same thing when it's my turn to write. It's hard to make a distant place really come alive for someone unless there's a great deal of honesty there in the description. But speaking of that, it's pretty quiet here, it's not like they're showing on the news and so there's not much I can add in that regard. Hence, the random experiences : )
DeleteMuchísimas gracias for your last sentence, by the way... it was really wonderful to read!!!
It is your blog and entirely up to you what you include.
ReplyDeleteOur choice is to be here and reading of normal Kharkiv life.
Thank you, Rupert.
DeleteGreat post, K :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment, Jenn!
DeleteFor many years until recent events, people here, in the US would often ask me: “How was it: to live in Russia (they meant Soviet Union) during those times. Were you oppressed, brainwashed, etc.?”
ReplyDeleteI never knew what to say. I, probably, was oppressed and, most certainly, brainwashed, but I did not realized it at the time. I lived my everyday life, walked the same streets as you do now and enjoyed the same parks as you do, ate and drunk at my favorite little places (when I had money). Politics did not affect me much. Kharkov is still to me one of the most romantic cities in the world, along with Seville and San Antonio.
Revolutions come and go; our life still goes on.
Keep writig!
Sergey.
"... life still goes on"- well said, Sergey.
DeleteAnd agreed, there is definitely a romantic side to the city : )
Sergey!
DeleteDo you go to the Russian/Ukrainian meetups in San Antonio?
Wayne
Luvsiesous.com
young-ukrianian.co
I get you 100%. I'm just coming back to blogging tentatively as I think most of us are parched and in need of a break - just a teeny-tiny sense of normalcy once in a while. Difficult times.
ReplyDeleteSO, so glad you're bit by bit venturing back, MCD. You were missed!
DeleteCat passports are ALWAYS important :-)
ReplyDeleteКит agrees! : )
DeleteWell, I for one do not see the Ukrainian crisis, Russian invasion, on the news 24/7 .... Unless you think RT.com is a great source of news.
ReplyDeleteAnd I look for news daily.
But, back to Ukraine. My friends all tell me they are scared. Or, they do not talk about it.
Scary times, but the reality is simple. Russia does not have the man power to invade Ukraine successfully. Ukrainians defended Russia very well against the Nazis. And the Nazis were about as technologically advanced then as Russia is now.
So, I do not worry much. But, I wish I was at home in Odessa, instead of in Texas putting Ukrainians to work.
Wayne
Young-Ukrainian.co
Luvsiesous.com
Hi Wayne! Yes, I sometimes forget that it's just one more headline amongst the many headlines and then I talk to friends back home and they say "Oh, yeah, I think I heard something about that" :P As for the news here, there's been little else these days... although slowly less dramatic topics are returning to print.
DeleteHope it's not too hot in TX these days! It's only 3F here today.
We postponed our trip to Kherson by one mouth and have made the decision to go and this post further solidified in my determination that it is the right choice. Especially the below sentence.
ReplyDelete" then maybe it helps you remember what you felt about this place and its people way before this all started, a reminder of what originally captured your interest. "
I am grateful for your view.
Zak
Thanks, Zak... and I remember you from the other week : ) You left a comment on my About page. Are you coming after the elections then?
DeleteI think we will be coming sooner than later due to work scheduling issues. As you said life goes on. :) We have been traveling back and forth since 2004, and I came to feel that Ukraine is my second home. I have never had a bad visit yet, no crime or trouble of any kind. Plus Kvas is the best drunk out of the large Yellow dispensaries in a recycled glass mug! :)
DeleteAh, yes, that kvas is good stuff! It goes perfectly with good weather and long walks.
DeleteI second this.
ReplyDelete