The first half of my virtual journal about the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine — All of these stories were published on Medium before and then put together into this compilation. December 22, 2021 The news is sending a clear signal — Russia is about to invade Ukraine. To many, the message causes a good degree of excitement and thrill. One more problem that needs my genius solution…

The second half of my virtual journal about the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine — All of these stories were published on Medium before and then put together into this compilation. September 11, 2022 After a summer of frustrating news, for the last three days, my boyfriend(Serhii) and I have been feeling hysterically happy. The Ukrainian army has started its counteroffensive movement in Kharkiv Oblast and the Donbas…

It’s very very overwhelming times, right? — I’ve been overwhelmed for a while and my processor just got broken. Maybe this young growing spring is also heating me up from the inside. It encourages me to change and update. It also makes me very aware of the things I’m leaving behind. Spring — in general — makes…

Is there a common pattern in everything we love? — A long walk is one of my most listened-to songs. I can be a bit of a runner in a heat of life. Jill Scott helps me to slow down and walk the line of mundanity more evenly. She sings about situations, temptations, simulations, conversation, relaxations. To my ears, her…

We finally have our light back after three months of power outages. — I go out to the street. I see the light. I see so much light. It’s unusual to see so much light outside. Three months into power outages, streetlights have gone from being a basic amenity to becoming a rare radiant phenomenon. I haven’t really thought this thought before. Now…

4 writing lessons from the gloomiest and doomiest Medium writer. — Wild as fire, her words burn on everyone’s tongue and leave some of us deeply deeply hurt yet wanting for that hurting to be continued. Is she real? Is she fake? Is she only good for a hot take? Whoever Jessica Wildfire is in real life — on Medium, she’s…

January has felt like a calm before the storm. — In less than a month, Kyiv will have lived under the steel wing of war a whole year. At such a time, the city is filled with some anxiety and much anticipation. The hardest winter in Ukraine’s modern history is almost behind it. We’re waiting for spring to come carrying…

“Please don’t bring a black girl home” — Quoting life I don’t remember when. I don’t remember how. I don’t remember the tone. I don’t remember the context. I don’t remember my reply. I don’t remember the exact details. …