My grandmother raised me since
I was two weeks old.
These poems I wrote for her...
Its about her youth...
I wrote in both English and Russian,
She likes it a lot, something else she is writing...
June 22, 1941,
I was two weeks old.
These poems I wrote for her...
Its about her youth...
I wrote in both English and Russian,
She likes it a lot, something else she is writing...
June 22, 1941,
Beautiful day, right after my Birthday.
When
I thought, I will have it all.
Someone screaming:
War,
war, turn on the radio.
4
pm, nothing will be the same again.
Women crying:
Oh,
my God, oh, my God!
Sons, why do you have to go!?
Men
getting ready without a word,
Stone faces: we will be back with victory.
Took
only ten minutes to make huge lines near the school:
All
men from 18 to 55 years old,
Women, nurses and doctors
Must
go immediately...
The
next day radios working nonstop,
Our
leader had the first talk:
Brothers and sisters we will together stay
And
face our enemy.
Everyone is getting ready,
All
prepared:
Food, milk, bread, clothes...
The first two years were the hardest one.
One
day from Moscow,
Two
days from bombs and thanks,
We
stood up strong.
All
young and most of old men were gone,
Not
eighteen still had to go:
The
enemies didn't blew up our cities to say "hello".
I
remember my mother slapped my face first time:
Ira,
don't cry. Keep your tears for our victory.
My
father was working day and night,
We
didn't know he almost didn't eat,
Kept
the bread for me.
Mother could only ask,
When
she was back from working on the farm:
If
any letters from my brother, what's new,
If I
ate and did my homework.
Women felt sorry for us, girls,
No
matter what, we had to go to school.
I
saw women pulling metal pieces,
Digging the dry land,
Our
army needed bread,
Twice a months a big truck,
What
can you give to our victory,
We
gave everything.
No
way we would let our men go down,
If
we were standing behind.
We
believed...
The country was not the government,
Was
not just the army,
The
country were people,
Who
in majority,
Did
not except the defeat.
Who
said together after all;
We
would give it all.
In
first hours thousands of men left homes,
Women smiled, cried,
We
will be waiting here,
Or
we go with you.
Our
children, looking at the windows, believed:
My father will be back....
When my grandmother was small,
She
thought her parents didn't love her much at all.
Because she was a girl.
And
her brother could do what he wanted,
They
would fight and mother was always on the brother's side:
He
is a boy, he is right.
Then
the Second World War started.
Her
three uncles and two aunts went the very first day,
Summer, was summer again...
In
less than a months papers: you will never see them at all.
Now,
winter, her brother turn, he was almost eighteen years old.
All
the young girl knew, she wants him back home and there is no chance if he
wouldn't be back.
When
many people gave up, when mothers stopped to believe and wait,
All
she repeated: we will win, he will be back.
It
was not two counties war any more,
It
was her war too.
And
guess how won?
An
old ugly witch war or
A
beautiful young girl?
The
girl who could see the places she had never been,
Who
could see faces, who could feel,
Who
could stop a machine gun,
And
change the direction of an enemy tank.
The
girl who stood up against the war and said only one time:
"He is mine, don't even try".
From
an old village far away,
She
brought her brother home back.
Everyone was surprised,
Who
can go to the war and never be touched once?
He
has medals, he is parents pride.
They
did not know,
The
sister wanted her brother only to be alive,
More
than anything in the world.
It
wasn't important if they will ever fight or
Who
love who more.
She
wanted him be at home.
I asked old soldier:
Were
you afraid at least one time?
He
said: yes, of course, I won't lie.
I didn't know what's next,
What
to expect.
In
times when fear was stopping me,
I
closed my eyes, and voice inside,
Would push me forward:
It's
for the future, you will be fine;
Go,
make one step, then one more,
And
more, and more...
Now, see, I am with you at home.
After the war we
rebuilt our cities,
Rebuilt our land, we started all over,
We started again, day after day, brick after
brick, not just for us,
Who made it, walked through.
We did it for people,
Who covered us, stood up in frond,
And said: no way I let you touch my sons and
my daughters, my home, my peace.
We rebuilt our land for our children, far away
chubby grandkids to walk and enjoy, love, live, be strong.
We are the one who can do it all...
The Victory day,
Music on the radio everywhere!
The biggest thought we, women, had,
The war is over and our men will be back.
Thin, sick, tired, with grey hair,
But alive!
Thank you, God,
They returned home alive...
For us winning
the war was
Only matter of time.
We knew, from day one,
From the moment we heard the news on radios:
Nothing ever will stop us.
We will win, stepping every day
Closer to the victory.
Because the last time we lost any war
Was eleven century.
Our King at that time,
Who after won any way said:
Don't go with swords against our people.
The war made us
stronger,
Made us fight back harder and harder
Every single day more and more.
We would wake up every morning,
Like warriors.
What else can we do
To bring our men and women home?
Even children, young partisans,
Said "no" to our enemy.
We repeated, standing on the farms, factories,
Building roads, again and again:
We can, we can, we can!
Without doubt our fathers, mothers, brothers,
sisters,
Grandparents, uncles and aunts, cousins
Will be back home.
War was not a joke, not slap in the face
It was about life.
And we were not ever give it up.
It took four years, but we did it.
We brought victory to our home!
February 1942,
Our army officers walked in school.
We can see trough the window.
The teacher leaves,
Her son in Grade 12.
My brother's class and another one
Called together for a meeting,
All the girls were told to leave the room.
No school...
The first
happiest day at that war
Was when my cousin, a nurse,
Got home for 3 days.
She had two medals,
It was December, 1941.
She had concussion in one battle,
But was smiling like nothing happened:
You know what,
I have twenty seven brothers...
We promised, if we get out after one time,
We all will be sisters and brothers.
rs and sisters we will together stay
And face our enemy.
Everyone is getting ready,
All prepared:
Food, milk, bread, clothes...
Second
World War,
Young Russian
nurse dancing
On a mobile
hospital floor.
Green uniform,
medal and smile.
Like nothing to
worry,
Nothing to cry.
Everyone’s
laughing, no sirens.
Old doctor
quietly said:
Now I know,
We always will
win.
For girls like
this we will stay until the end.
We will stay
until the end.
The first winter
battle,
Fire and ice,
Bombs, flying
grenades, fast dirty tanks.
No time to worry,
No time to cry.
Go under fire,
Save life after
life.
Red captain,
can’t see the face,
Looked at her
eyes and
Wiped all burned
hands:
For girls like
this
We will stay
until the end.
We will stay
until the end.
1945, near
Berlin,
Surrounded house,
Only one our
soldier,
Out of hundred
survived.
He gives the
nurse gun:
Girl, you can
ran,
Beg them,
believe,
You are young,
you have to live.
Leave me here,
I don’t think
I’ll make it anyway.
Take the gun, do
what I say.
What the nurse
said,
How she smiled:
I am not leaving
you,
The war will end.
And we,
We will stay
until the end,
We will stay
until the end.
My brother wrote
a letter from the front line.
It was 1945, May 9,
The most beautiful day:
My dear people,
You are always the one here with me.
I know when I am alone,
You are behind and make me feel strong.
We had terrible fights,
Even we thought it might be the end,
We stood, we went again and again.
No step back, never, no way.
Every day, morning, night.
We would go forward again and again,
Looking up, " the victory" men.
We did it! We win!
My grandmother's
brother said
Only one time he felt giving up during the
war.
1942, new year,
Our army was not winning,
Was not getting a chance,
No left friends,
Standing like wall near the capital.
Only one of thousand could survive after each
fight.
Then propaganda took a new way.
All the solders and general were told the same
day:
Think what would happen if we loose now,
What would happen to our women and children.
They are working day at night, factories,
hospitals,
collective farms, cutting forest, building train roads,
Giving us their blood like cows give milk,
Sending you last piece of bread.
Not giving up.
What would happen to them.
Think about our women here,
Who go after you in each fight,
Hoping only to be on time.
You soldiers, you have guns, bombs, tanks,
The nurses, doctors have only medical bags.
Think again what would happen to them...
It was the first day of our victory.
