“Dobro da nije doživjela ovaj dan”, takve su se misli izgovarale više puta nakon početka sveobuhvatne invazije na Ukrajinu. Čudan način da se vidi barem nešto dobro u smrti voljene bake. Ali rat sve čini vrlo kontrastnim.

Moja baka rodila se tri godine prije početka Drugog svjetskog rata. Rat je dvaput prešao preko teritorija Ukrajine: napadom vojske Hitlerove Njemačke i protunapadom Sovjetske Crvene armije. To je tadašnju Ukrajinsku Sovjetsku Republiku učinilo jednom od najviše pogođenih ratnim djelovanjima. Razmjere ljudskih gubitaka, civilnih, ne samo vojnih, i razaranja bilo je teško zamisliti. Do 2022. godine… Otac moje bake je poginuo. Iz sjećanja joj je ostala samo sveprožimajuća glad. Kuhali su juhu od trave. I teška bolest mlađeg brata. Izliječili su ga Talijani koji su bili smješteni u bakinom selu.

“Stari” rat

U školskim godinama, kao i svi školarci sovjetske Ukrajine, čestitala sam veteranima Velikog domovinskog rata 1941.-45. Meni nisu pričali o Svjetskom ratu. Znala sam za “podmuklost Nijemaca”. Međutim, zločini Sovjetskog Saveza bili su tajna. Pobjeda nad nacistima bila je beskrajan praznik, bez žrtava, bez grešaka, bez istine, bez sjećanja, bez odgovornosti… Međutim, to sam shvatila tek kasnije, nakon raspada SSSR-a. U Ukrajini.

Europski slogan “Nikada više” najbolje je izražavao i moje misli o ratu. Nikada više se takvo što ne smije dogoditi. Međutim, među mojim poznanicima bilo je i neprihvaćanja. “To je naša pobjeda, naš ponos i postignuće. Možemo ponoviti. Neka Europljani tuguju. Mi ćemo slaviti.” Živjeli smo, radili, odmarali se zajedno. Jedino što nas je razlikovalo bile su godine formiranja provedene u Ukrajini i u Rusiji.

“Novi” rat

Kada je moja starija kći imala šest godina, 2014. godine započeo je rat Rusije protiv Ukrajine. Moja trogodišnja mlađa kći skrivala se od ruskih granatiranja već 2022. godine. Nijedna generacija naše obitelji nije izbjegla rat. I pomislila sam: “Dobro da baka ovo ne vidi…”. Ti isti poznanici iz Rusije i ovaj rat doživljavaju olako. Oni žude za ponavljanjem. Zbog himerične pobjede. Zbog samopotvrđivanja i slavlja.

Tako sa žaljenjem možemo samo konstatirati: rat se uvijek može ponovno dogoditi. Bilo gdje. Bez obzira na to, “zaslužuješ” li ga ili ne. Svejedno, jesi li spreman popustiti ili imaš hrabrosti braniti se. Rat počinje jer agresor sebe smatra jakim. On traje jer netko smatra da ih neće dotaknuti. Rat veličaju oni koji opet nisu naučili povijest.

It Happened Again

“It’s good that she didn’t live to see this day” — such thoughts were expressed more than once after the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. A strange way to see at least something good in the death of a beloved grandmother. But war makes everything very contrasting.

My grandmother was born three years before the start of World War II. The war rolled through the territory of Ukraine twice: with the offensive of Hitler’s German troops and the counter-offensive of the Soviet Red Army. This made the then Ukrainian Soviet Republic one of the most affected by military actions. The scale of human losses, civilian, not just military, and destruction was hard to imagine. Until 2022… My grandmother’s father died. From her memories, only an all-consuming hunger remained. They cooked soup from grass. And the serious illness of her younger brother. He was cured by Italians who were quartered in my grandmother’s village.

”Old” war

During my school years, like all schoolchildren in Soviet Ukraine, I congratulated veterans of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45. I was not told about the World War. I knew about the “treachery of the Germans.” However, the crimes of the Soviet Union were a secret. The victory over the Nazis was an endless holiday, without victims, without mistakes, without truth, without memory, without responsibility… However, I was able to understand this only when I was older, after the collapse of the USSR. In Ukraine.

The European slogan “Never again” best expressed my thoughts about war. Never again should such a thing happen. However, among my acquaintances, there was also rejection. “This is our victory, our pride and achievement. We can do it again. Let the Europeans grieve. We will celebrate.” We lived, worked, and rested together. The only thing that distinguished us was the formative years lived in Ukraine and in Russia.

”New” war

When my eldest daughter was six years old, in 2014, Russia’s war against Ukraine began. My three-year-old younger daughter was hiding from Russian shelling in 2022. Not a single generation of our family has escaped war. And I thought: “It’s good that grandmother doesn’t see this…”. Those same acquaintances from Russia perceive this war lightly as well. They desire a repeat. For the sake of a chimerical victory. For the sake of self-affirmation and celebration.

So, with regret, we can only state: war can always happen again. Anywhere. Regardless of whether you “deserve” it or not. Regardless of whether you are ready to yield or have the courage to defend yourself. War begins because the aggressor considers himself strong. It continues because someone believes it will not touch them. War is glorified by those who have once again not learned history.