This is a translation off my Dutch post "bijna normaal"
Commemoration of all children died during the war.
place: Donetsk ©2017 Patrick Lancaster
It is now early spring,
the windows are still closed and the war suddenly seems far away.
In the summer outside, or with the windows open you can hear the artillery,
far away, but still.
I was amazed at how quickly you get used to these sounds.
On the street, it seems as if nothing had happened.
Children play outside, the shops and markets are full, people go to their work as normal.
Only in the sound of artillery in the evening, far away in the distance
resounds the war.
Only when you driving in the direction of the block posts, you notice where you are.
The bullet holes and artillery strikes in walls and some wrecked houses give a clearer picture. Sometimes just broken roofs, sometimes totally destroyed.
Most of it is destroyed at the beginning of the war.
However just before the block posts, in the outer districts of Donetsk
something still fall out of the sky so now and then.
Beyond the block posts, most people don`t come here anymore,
only people who live in the villages between the first block posts and the front line.
During the day it is relatively safe here, in the night many sleep in their basement.
In some areas it is not that bad, other areas are experiencing every night the true face of the war.
The grey zone, the area where no one comes.
Almost no one.
But there are still people living here,
people who refuse to leave their home, it's all they have.
The many memories of a place that was once so full of joy,
now makes place for sadness, but they can't let go,
it is theirs.
In the Centre of Donetsk you notice none of this,
here everything goes on, life is normal, almost normal.
Until the evening, when we hear the familiar sound, we are again reminded of these people.
The people who refuse to give in to the atrocities of the war.
And to the soldiers who daily risk their lives to protect these people
and us all, but they do it with love.
With love because it is the safety of their mother,
their wife, their children, their cousins, their friends and family,
their home...
With love from the DPR
Ilse
One thing that will always remain a mystery to me..is war...
the signals around you remind us all every day of it...it changes...everything!
You are right, it is strange. How a war changes everything and nothing at the same time.
People still need food, still need to cook, clean, wash, ect. Live goes on.
When people look at a country ore an area that is in war, it is easy to picture the whole place as a fire zone. But this is not always the case.
Lines here are static now for a wile and people must life there lives, they can only make the best out of it. For people closer to the frontline it is a whole different story.
And then you have the rest of the world, the people that only here everything on the news, different story`s depending to who you are listening, the political and media propaganda.
And I must say, seeing both worlds, sometimes it is easier to see the bigger picture when you are not in the middle.
The signals are more political and that is the strange thing for the people here, they only hear the artillery and see Russian and Ukrainian news telling totally conflicting stories of course.
But for them it is clear, the hate that suddenly rised at Maidan, that was first a peaceful protest and became a nightmare, is enough.
Enough to not want to be part of this, not want to be I the center of hate. And not want to be the playball of the west that is tolerating and even financing this hate.
But the true picture goes way deeper. And yes, that picture changes everything.
If you are not that familiar with the Ukraine war I can deeply recommend the documentary from Oliver Stone, Ukraine on fire. It gives a insight that most people don`t know.
I must say that the origin goes further than the documentary, but it is a good start.
If you can understand the origin of this, than you understand the importance.
And you will understand that the rabbit hole is deep, very deep.
https://www.sott.net/article/373841-Ukraine-on-Fire-How-US-Not-Russia-Destroyed-Ukraine-Oliver-Stone-Documentary-Finally-Available-VIDEO