Ukraine (1)

1/7

Today was the day we were heading to Ukraine from Krakow. Rudi had arranged for a car to pick us up. Unfortunately the driver Denis was a bit of a maniac and the road was wet and it was raining. It did cross our minds more than once that we might die just trying to get to Ukraine. Thankfully we ended up hitting some smaller roads and he had to slow down as I was getting ready to say something. He also looked like a heart attack on legs so I was ready to grab the wheel if he had a cardiac arrest whilst driving!

He did prove his worth though when we got to the border. The line was incredible and we calculated at the rate it was moving we’d be likely to be there at least six hours. Denis was looking very impatient as he turned and asked me in Ukrainian what we do for work. I told him we are doctors from Australia. His eyes lit up and he jumped out the car and went ahead to the border guard. Next thing we knew we were allowed into another lane and pushed to the front of the queue. A few more checks and we were through! It was a very emotional moment for me having spent my entire life dreaming about Ukraine. My Ukrainian grandfather had told me endless stories of his life in Ukraine, of it’s beauty and abundance with the passion that comes from someone that has understood oppression and occupation. I think to be honest I was always a little afraid that the reality would not match. But in those first few kilometres I saw that some of that beauty was still there as we drove through beautiful, bountiful fields of wheat, barley and sunflowers. There were horse drawn ploughs in some of the smaller villages, gold domed churches and ‘Babushkas’ selling fresh picked mushrooms on the side of the road as we drove through birch and oak forests. Of course we have yet to see the parts of Ukraine that have been ravaged by war but it was wonderful to see this beauty and scenery just as I had imagined it all those years.

Poland- Ukraine border

We’ve crossed into Ukraine

Babushkas selling forest mushrooms

‘Glory to Ukraine’ with a Russian tank on fire

2/7

Rudi’s assistant Christina arranged to meet us at their church this morning. The Ukrainian Bible Church. They had very kindly arranged an interpreter for us. Up until now, apart from the occasional soldier here and there and some sandbags in building windows, it was easy to forget here in Lviv that there even was a war. But it didn’t take long to be reminded. The Pastor is from Bakhmut and he spoke about how his entire childhood town is wiped out and all the buildings he knew razed to the ground. The church prayed for victory and that there would not be a nuclear catastrophe which is everyone’s fear at present – knowing that the Russians have mined 4 of the 6 reactors in Zaphorizhia.

After church we spoke with some of the people. One man told how his wife was from Donetsk and they fled from there early in the war. This area is now under occupation. They then went to Kyiv but fled from there as it was difficult to live there with a child with constant air raid alerts almost every day. He told us that his mother and sister still live in Kyiv. His mum in typical Slavic matter-of-factness assures him that the shelling doesn’t bother her as she ‘is used to it.” His sister has a government job and has access to a good shelter but she lives in constant fear and there are missile attacks regularly. Thankfully the air defence is good and shoots down most of the missiles. When asked what he thought would happen to Ukraine if the Russians win he said “It will become one big concentration camp, there will be ethnic cleansing and cleansing of anyone who does not agree with their ideology.” He also said that Putin gets away with this as the majority of his population is brainwashed into hating Ukrainians and idolising Putin. He made the point that if the adults can be so easily brainwashed how much easier will it be to brainwash the children they are kidnapping from the Ukraine under the guise of ‘rescuing’ them?

Another man we spoke to told us how many church pastors have been killed in the war but that many more young people are stepping up and signing up to train to become pastors. The church in Ukraine has been one of the main providers of shelter and humanitarian aid and there has been a real growth in the church here.

Christina then took us to a restaurant for lunch and we got to have some good conversation with her, hearing about her medical studies and how they’ve been disrupted by covid and the war. She told us about the work of CMAU (Christian Medical Association of Ukraine) and how they have been providing all kinds of humanitarian aid, food, water, diapers, hygiene products, medicines as well as more serious medical equipment, training and mobile medical clinics to deoccupied areas. They also provided considerable aid to those affected by the Russian blowing up of the Khakohva dam that flooded vast areas of land, depleted other areas of their reservoir, killed many people and left tens of thousands without clean drinking water leading to disease outbreaks. They really do amazing work.

I then headed out to the shops, being summer it is light and everything is open until about 9pm. I was after a couple of things for the apartment so just wanted like a target or something. But I couldn’t find anything like that but did end up in a supermarket that was like a foodie heaven! I’ve never seen a supermarket with so many smallgoods and delicatessen items in my life.