“We have been married for 17 years and have never left each other for more than 1 day. The war has separated us and now we have not seen each other for over 5 months.”

February 24, 2021 was a normal working day. I woke up in the morning and started preparing the children for school. I turned on the TV and saw terrible news: Russia bombed Kyiv and the other Ukrainian cities. It was terrible! I am from Western Ukraine, from Kamianets-Podilsky. My town is far away from the front but the war reached us too: after it all started, we ran to shelters day and night. Airborne alarms were on, planes were flying so low – it was unsettling all the time. We watched the fighting on TV and were worried about our children. My mother, who has been living in Sweden for two years with her husband, has insisted that we come to Sweden. On March 18, we took a bus to Poland and then we were lucky to meet a Finnish volunteer who helped us get to Finland and then we took the ferry on to Sweden.
On 22 March we arrived in Sundsvall. We lived with my mother for about two months and then we turned to the Swedish Migration Agency, which placed us in Älandsbro. In the middle of July I found out that my husband was mobilized and decided to go back to Ukraine to see him before he goes to the fighting. We have been married for 17 years and have never left each other for more than 1 day. The war has separated us and now we have not seen each other for over 5 months. Unfortunately, we didn’t meet in July because three days before I came back to Ukraine, he had to go to the front. I hope fate reunites us. I, like thousands of other women, pray to God and wait when Ukraine wins the war and we can all return home to hug our loved ones. Family is the most precious thing we have! Today, the children and I are in Ukraine. Sometimes I am very scared to be here but here are my friends and relatives who can comfort me at any time. Today, I highly value the opportunity to be at home. The children have started going to school but every time the air raid warning goes off they have to hide in shelters. It is our and our children’s reality. Unfortunately. We are fighting with everything we have to change this. Our country is the land of free people and it is, where and shall remain so! Glory to our soldiers who defend our home. Slava Ukraini – Glory to Ukraine!