Hello my darlings!💙💛

I want to share with you my new experience that I got this weekend. I want to remind you what horror and destruction this war brought. The war is still going on, we can't forget about it, we can't relax. These photos are the consequences of the disaster, it is devastation and pain. Once there were houses here, but now it is a pile of burnt stones covered with pieces of metal.

More than a year has passed since the full-scale ru**ian invasion of Ukraine, it has been a year since the russians left the Kyiv region. A year ago, atrocities in Bucha, Irpin, Gostomel and other towns and villages were revealed to the world. Also the village of Gorenka... A year later, this village is still destroyed and I saw it with my own eyes. My friends and I went to the de-occupied territories as volunteers to help clear the debris. I regret that I did not do this earlier and I am very grateful to my friend who showed us this event. I hope we can go there on weekends and do more useful things.

We submitted applications to the organizers and read the safety instructions for handling explosive devices. At first, I felt a "micro-heart attack", thinking that in fact at any moment we could come across something explosive. I heard that the orcs covered everything with small anti-personnel mines and other dangerous devices. The organizers reassured us that sappers were already working on the site and checked everything. But we were still a little nervous when we found what looked like a shell fragment. It turned out that it was just a piece of a gas pipe that remained from the house.

In order to clear the area, we had to break down two walls. I smashed the wall several times with a sledgehammer and it was very exciting. We put stones and bricks in buckets and carried them to the truck. I don't know where it was all taken, but the truck came back empty probably 4 or 5 times. We also removed the remaining metal pieces of the roof and tried to break pieces of the foundation. There were about 20 of us, maybe less. We worked with small breaks and joked a lot. I met several Canadians who have been volunteering for a long time, one of them filmed the whole process on camera to later present his documentary film. He took a small interview at our company and I'm a little embarrassed, because I'm not sure how to communicate in English. Out of fright, I could only say a few words and kept blinking strangely. But my boyfriend and friend were very enthusiastic, they said everything necessary and complemented each other very well.

A good lunch awaited us for a good job. Hot soup and pilaf seemed like the most delicious food in the world at that moment. We returned home already in the evening, exhausted and dirty, but satisfied with ourselves and the fact that we were able to do something small, but useful.

My muscles hurt so much for several days that I couldn't get out of bed. But still, I am proud of myself and glad that I go to the gym, which definitely helped me a lot to at least lift a heavy sledgehammer.

If someone does not know what to do and wants to start rebuilding the country, look for volunteer organizations and join. I am going to go again, it is an unforgettable experience that makes me feel useful and do something for the good of my country. Together we are a force and we will deal with all this horror that has fallen upon us, we will rebuild every city and village and bring life back to the regions that have been affected by this absolute evil called ru**ia.

Glory to Ukraine! Слава Україні!