For the first time on my visits to Ukraine I felt a little nervous overnight on Aug. 23, 2024, concerned as to how Russia would choose to mark Kyiv’s Independence celebration on the next day.
Fortunately, my worst fears were not realized. There were no major attacks on Kyiv that night or the next day. I shut my eyes and had a relatively peaceful night’s sleep.
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I woke up to a gloriously sunny day. In the previous year when the capital’s central Khreshchatyk street was filled with reminders of the war with a display of burnt-out Russian tanks, as Ukrainians walked around them with their flags and sporting national dress with a tangible sense of patriotism. Even Boris Johnson showed his face in 2023.
This year’s National Day told a similar story of loyalty and optimism even though there were no tanks or other weapons of war on parade this year.
The full-scale invasion has gone on and on. Perhaps there are bigger priorities (and expenses) for President Volodymyr Zelensky than setting up the monumental display of previous years. Perhaps many residents of Kyiv no longer feel so urged to rush to public celebration of a war they live with day in and day out.
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Activists from ‘Terminy Sluzhby’ took to the streets to ask the president to “Consider petition No. 224136 do define clear terms of military service,”. Another sign declared that “you will not win the war on the shoulders of the first volunteers”.
Yuliia, whose husband has been serving since 2022 with the best of good will, would like a fairer system for such early patriots, whose only exit appears to be death or injury in a war that shows no sign of drawing to a close. She also worried that battalions of exhausted soldiers could be counter-productive.
The sacrifice of Ukrainian soldiers is made evident by the sea of flags that continue to accumulate around Maidan Nezalezhnosti, each one representing a fallen hero. There is a continuous procession of soldiers and relatives who spend a moment by a specific memorial, to leave a flower or to spend a quiet moment remembering their departed loved on.
As the colors of the flags and some images begin to vanish under the bleaching effects of the intense sun, one hopes these soldiers will be less easily forgotten. The likeness of others has been etched into stone, to guarantee eternal glory.
Ukraine celebrates its continuing Independence, today, but at no small cost.
While the numbers on the street this year have reduced somewhat, what is clear is that the Spirit of Ukraine remains strong in the many who did arrive in yellow & blue, in black & red, sunflowers in hand or wearing a traditional vyshyvanka.
The selfies people take are about pride and defiance, strength and survival. To celebrate Ukraine with such renewed patriotism is in the belief that there will soon be a new future of true Independence.
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