| Submit your comments on this article |
| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| The Spirit of Donbass. Poems and Faith by Elena Zaslavskaya |
| 2024-11-02 |
| Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited. I have followed this young woman's work for many, many years. Some of her work occasionally can be found on V Kontakte Good to see she is getting recognition and acknowledgement now. by Evgeniy Konovalov [REGNUM] Her poems are echoes of war that penetrate into the very heart. Stories about how war changes a person, makes one appreciate simple things and hardens the spirit. She is a resident of Lugansk who survived the siege and the mother of a soldier who fought for the liberation of Lysychansk. Her son is a veteran of the SVO, her father is a militiaman of the first wave, and her hometown is like a splinter on a map where explosions can still be heard. However, there is no room for fear or despair in her words. Only fortitude, love for the Motherland and faith in the future. Elena Zaslavskaya is a poet and children's writer born in Lisichansk and living in Lugansk. Her work is imbued with the spirit of war and personal experiences. The events of 2014 and 2022 became a deep fault line in her life, radically changing her perception of the world and her outlook on creativity. "I look at my life before 2014 and after. This is a point on my life's path that changed a lot. Now I try to live in such a way that I can do everything I can every day. Say I love to those I love, help those I can help. And, of course, poems on military themes have become an integral part of my work," says the poetess. Her first poem on a military theme, "Black Bread", appeared in May 2014, and includes the following lines: "There has been no trouble for a long time, there has been no war for a long, long time." Since then, her poetry has become a reflection of the events taking place in Donbass and Novorossiya. "The Year of War", "Novorossiya of Thunder. Novorossiya of Dreams", "Donbass Imagineer" - these are the books that became milestones in Zaslavskaya's work. In them, she shares her experiences, observations, and reflections on the war and its consequences. “My work is essentially my poetic diary,” the poetess notes. In it, she writes not only about herself, but also about the people she meets, about those who found themselves in the center of tragic events. There is an author's preamble to one of Zaslavskaya's poems: "All heroes are real, all coincidences are not accidental, all rights are defenseless." Her works also include stories about a father and son who went to defend their homeland. "My father confronted my mother with the fact: 'That's it, I'm wearing the uniform.' At first, it was something like a people's militia. Then, when the SBU was taken, my father was among those who formed a human shield in front of the building. And we came then, too. I remember it was a point of attraction for Luhansk passionaries and those who supported the Russian Spring. My son Ivan was there, too. He said then: 'Mom, I hope this doesn't end before I grow up,'" Zaslavskaya recalls. The war, according to her, became part of reality for her family, as it was for all residents of the liberated territories. The poetess's son is a reenactor, always interested in history and military affairs. Ivan went to the SVO, following his grandfather's example. "On February 18, 2022, two decrees were issued: on general evacuation and on general mobilization. Ivan immediately went to the military registration and enlistment office, but he was unable to get into the unit where his friends served. So he decided to go with all the students and teachers of the Luhansk Matusovsky Academy," Elena recalls. Seeing the men off from the walls of the academy, no one could have imagined that this farewell would be so tragic and at the same time historical. "The SVO broke out — the world turned upside down. For me, a person who lived in the conditions of an unrecognized republic, every day was a test. The severity of this state, the constant uncertainty were unbearable. But when Russia recognized the republics and the SVO began, I felt something like a breath of fresh air. On the one hand, it was joy, and on the other, it was justice, for which we had fought for so long," the poetess admits. Ivan took part in the battles for Krasny Liman, Severodonetsk, Lisichansk. He went through encirclement, wounds, losses. His military experience became an integral part of his personality, and his return to civilian life was a turning point that left an imprint on his future destiny. To survive the horrors of war, Zaslavskaya's son, while in the combat zone, wrote down his experiences in a notebook that his mother had given to the combat zone as humanitarian aid. It contained poems and diary entries full of emotion and pain. "He wrote poems before this, but it was more like a toy. And during the war he approached creativity more seriously," the poetess notes. Ivan's diary was not published as a separate collection, but its publications appeared in various literary magazines and anthologies dedicated to the war, such as "Velikiy Blokpost" and "Za Drugi Svoya." Zaslavskaya hopes that a selection of Ivan's poems, which is called "Zapiski iz dugoutazh", will be published as a separate book. "The hardships of military life that he endured, I think, strengthened his character. Although the post-war syndrome is felt even now. For example, he did not resume his studies. He was a student at the beginning of the SVO, but now it seems to him that studying is something frivolous after the war. The turning point came prematurely," says Elena. Lysychansk is a special pain in the poetess's heart. She remembers the sign "Lysychansk" (in Ukrainian), which she saw at the location of her son's regiment. Then she understood - liberation is near. Joy for her son, pride in his feat and relief for his father, who could not return to his hometown for many years, merge into a single feeling. "I was happy not so much for myself as for my father, who since 2014 has not been able to come to his hometown, where he was born, where the graves of his loved ones are, where his friends and classmates are still alive. And I lived there for 16 years. For me, it is my hometown, we were waiting for liberation, and I am proud that my son took part in this. Ivan was also happy and called my dad, said: "Grandpa, you wanted it, but I am doing it," says Zaslavskaya. But the war is not over. The front line is close, drones fly over the city, and the Internet and communications are lost. Her hometown, where she spent her youth, lives under constant threat. "Entry into the city is only possible with a residence permit, which I don't have. I've been a resident of Lugansk for a long time, so I don't go there, but my mom and dad do. My aunt lives there, so I know what my hometown is going through and how the restoration is going. You can still feel the breath of war there," says the poetess. Despite all the hardships, Zaslavskaya finds the strength to create. She writes poetry, teaches at the Lugansk Academy of Culture, and shares her experience with her students. She believes that beauty and peace can overcome even the most terrible trials. "Life gives us balance. Everything is mixed up in our life. In one day you can see a war - there goes a soldier, there goes a car with "200" written on it, and then you see a couple sitting and kissing, you go to a class, tell students how important it is to live, create and not give up. You go - and inspiration strikes you. So everything is close by, you just need to be able to see beauty," Zaslavskaya is convinced. She believes that war will not break our society, but will make it stronger. She also believes in victory, in peace, and that light always conquers darkness. "The war will not just change society - it has already changed it. We have many who are now at the front, plus their families. There are already veterans: the old guard, militiamen, SVO participants. These are people who understand what a common misfortune is and what it means to win in it. This consolidates society, gives people a slightly different perspective on life. They begin to value what previously seemed ordinary and natural to them: family, home, native language, Victory Day holiday and the Motherland,” says the poetess. |
| Posted by:badanov |