For me, Victory Day has ALWAYS been a special holiday…
My school years were spent in a military town, where my father served as deputy commander of a fighter-bomber regiment, and during the Cold War we knew for sure: if the squadron flew off on a combat mission, they would have nowhere to return to… Strategic targets were the first to be hit.
Two military parades a year, noisy celebrations filled with patriotism, naval aviation veterans who, with tears in their eyes, told about the horrors of war… about that truth for which they could have been stripped of their party membership in Soviet times… because real events were very different from ideological propaganda.
In Belarus, where I lived until I was 17, they treated the memory of those who fell during the war years with great reverence…
But the strongest experiences came much later. When my sensitivity became heightened to the limit, and simply being in the presence of battle participants, a wave of pain and suffering, courage and heroism would rise up inside.
It’s understandable that in recent years I tried to observe the celebration from the sidelines, from the position of an observer… the emotions that arose were too heavy.
But this time everything was different.
On one hand, the tragic events in Ukraine.
On the other, I am currently in Riga, Latvia, and my parents, having watched the news on TV, constantly ask questions: How is it that Victory Day is banned in Latvia… for them, it is the day the Soviet occupation began…
I have always been far from politics. I am proud to be a citizen of Russia, but political manipulation — spare me…
On May 9th, breaking from my usual position, our whole family went in the morning to lay flowers in Victory Park in Riga. We found lonely veterans with medals, gave them red carnations, whispered words of gratitude, and made modest gifts.
It’s hard to put into words the storm of emotions that rose up inside… tears of sorrow… it’s been a long time since I immersed myself so deeply in the collective field of pain, suffering, hope, joy, victory…
In the evening we returned to the park again — my husband wanted me to see the thousands of people at the monument… gathered NOT for a festive concert…
What can I say, see for yourselves… One thing I know for sure, the news in the press will NEVER show how things really are… This can only be FELT and UNDERSTOOD!
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P.S. There is an option to post photos in the comments… If you have pictures from the Victory Day celebration in your city, feel free to share them… We REMEMBER! And we are GRATEFUL!
P.P.S. If you take photos everywhere with your phone and use Instagram, add me to your feed!