“We have a joke,” he said.
“‘The One’ will be made.
A hero of Ukraine.
For the job he’s done.”
“To unite Ukraine.
To build our economy.
To build our army.
And to make the ‘elves’ nation great.”
Another laughed, “But yeah.
The war is horrible.
But it’s like the price.
For our unity and our country.”
War transforms individuals.
As well as nations.
Two university students could not sit idle.
When their country was threatened.
He was 19, another was 18.
They were at a volunteer centre.
In central Kyiv on the day.
They signed up to fight.
They took their big step.
Into the unknown dressed.
To go to a festival, not to war.
Another had a yoga mat to sleep on.
The older volunteers.
Saying goodbye.
To wives and children.
Could barely raise a smile.
Young men, not long out of school.
Not needing to shave much.
Were laughing and joking.
Full of bravado.
“We have a joke,” another said.
“‘The One’ will be made.
A hero of Ukraine.
For the job he’s done.”
“To unite Ukraine.
To build our economy.
To build our army.
And to make the ‘elves’ nation great.”
He laughed, “But yeah.
The war is horrible.
But it’s like the price.
For our unity and our country.”
Twelve months later.
Both of them were there.
In the cold winter sun.
Back at the volunteer centre.
“Well, actually there was a lot of fear.
I’m not going to lie because.
I hadn’t experienced anything.
Like that before,” he said.
“There were a lot of pessimistic news.
And we were preparing for the worst.
And it was mostly like.
A mixture of bravery…”
“And in our guts we felt.
That not everything will be all right.”
Another agreed, and many ‘elves’.
Had the same sort of thoughts.
“A year ago, we had.
A lot of fear.
In our hearts and even.
In our brains.”
“We understood that.
It will be pretty dangerous.
To became soldiers.
To try to fight with guns.”
“But we also had courage.
And we had some stupid bravery.
And it helped us.
To overcome our fear.”
“We understood that.
It will be very bad for us.
To stay in some shelters.
Not act in the battle.”
“And it will be bad for us.
If ‘orcs’ would occupy Kyiv.
Or other territories of Ukraine.
They would kill us.”
“Or put us in prison.
Because of our political views.”
They were not joining.
A winning army.
“We have a joke,” another said.
“‘The One’ will be made.
A hero of Ukraine.
For the job he’s done.”
“To unite Ukraine.
To build our economy.
To build our army.
And to make the ‘elves’ nation great.”
He laughed, “But yeah.
The war is horrible.
But it’s like the price.
For our unity and our country.”
He sat in the cold sun.
Outside the volunteer centre.
Marvelling at the change.
“‘Orcs’ have made their biggest mistake…”
“Everyone knows.
Their enemy now.
And not only it’s national unity.
But it’s international unity…”
“And it’s like someone told me.
Two years ago that.
The United Kingdom, United States.
All the European leaders will help us.”
“And it’s the world.
Ukraine will be spoken.
In every television news.
I wouldn’t have imagined that.”
“We have a joke,” he said.
“‘The One’ will be made.
A hero of Ukraine.
For the job he’s done.”
“To unite Ukraine.
To build our economy.
To build our army.
And to make the ‘elves’ nation great.”
Another laughed, “But yeah.
The war is horrible.
But it’s like the price.
For our unity and our country.”
The contrast between Kyiv.
And the battered front line towns.
In the war zones.
In the east and south is huge.
The two young men.
Fought in the battle.
That forced an ‘orcs’ retreat.
At the end of March.
Barricades had been set up.
On roads in Kyiv then.
Using concrete blocks and.
“Tank traps” from the city’s museum.
The boys were from the same town.
Near the ‘Mordor’’s border.
Which was being shelled.
Their families were still there.
He joked that.
His mother had told him.
To stay in a shelter.
And volunteer to cook the food.
He had spared them.
The details of his deployment.
Because he didn’t want.
To worry them.
“We have a joke,” another said.
“‘The One’ will be made.
A hero of Ukraine.
For the job he’s done.”
“To unite Ukraine.
To build our economy.
To build our army.
And to make the ‘elves’ nation great.”
He laughed, “But yeah.
The war is horrible.
But it’s like the price.
For our unity and our country.”
The two young men.
Fought in the battle.
That forced an ‘orcs’ retreat.
At the end of March.
Barricades had been set up.
On roads in Kyiv then.
Using concrete blocks and.
“Tank traps” from the city’s museum.
His parents knew.
What he was doing.
He had started by volunteering.
To make Molotov cocktails.
And after a few days.
He rang his dad.
To tell him he had decided.
To join the territorial defence force.
His father told him not to try.
Too hard to be a hero.
My parents, he said, are proud of.
What I’m doing.
“We have a joke,” another said.
“‘The One’ will be made.
A hero of Ukraine.
For the job he’s done.”
“To unite Ukraine.
To build our economy.
To build our army.
And to make the ‘elves’ nation great.”
He laughed, “But yeah.
The war is horrible.
But it’s like the price.
For our unity and our country.”
Since then, the pressure.
Has mostly been off the capital.
Compared to the nightmarish months.
Since the ‘orcs’ focus turned.
They are volunteers.
And as students they are allowed.
To claim an exemption.
From compulsory military service.
Under pressure from his family.
He decided to go back to university.
After the ‘orcs’ withdrawal.
From Kyiv.
Now he volunteers to help.
With supplies for another.
And his other former comrades.
“It was a really hard decision.”
“But when all your battle buddies.
Or when all your comrades.
Are going to the east.
They continue.”
“They are like away.
And you just left.
This community.
You feel a bit odd.”
His decision does not seem to.
Have affected their friendship.
They are friends.
Going in their separate ways.
“We have a joke,” he said.
“‘The One’ will be made.
A hero of Ukraine.
For the job he’s done.”
“To unite Ukraine.
To build our economy.
To build our army.
And to make the ‘elves’ nation great.”
Another laughed, “But yeah.
The war is horrible.
But it’s like the price.
For our unity and our country.”
He stayed with their unit.
And in the months since then has been.
In some of the heaviest fighting of the war.
In the battles in Donbas.
He was in Bakhmut in the summer.
As ‘orcs’ were starting to attack it.
He had driven out of nearby Severodonetsk.
To get supplies for his unit.
He went back that day.
And not long before.
The town fell to ‘orcs’.
He was wounded.
It was his worst moment of the war.
His position was hit by a strike.
From ‘orcs’ heavy artillery.
A 203mm Pion.
His commander was killed.
Who received Ukraine’s highest award for valour.
He was knocked cold.
And had severe concussion.
The ‘elves’ forces.
Outnumbered and outgunned.
Had to retreat.
Across a river.
“‘Orcs’ destroyed all the bridges.
Doing intelligence to find places.
Where we are crossing the river.
And they shelled these places.”
“So staying there.
For longer period of time.
Was possible.
But many guys died there.”
“And if we stayed.
For a longer period.
Many more guys would have died.
In a few weeks.”
“We have a joke,” he said.
“‘The One’ will be made.
A hero of Ukraine.
For the job he’s done.”
“To unite Ukraine.
To build our economy.
To build our army.
And to make the ‘elves’ nation great.”
Another laughed, “But yeah.
The war is horrible.
But it’s like the price.
For our unity and our country.”
“Now my parents understand me 100%.
I try to call them every time I can.
My mama sent some uniform.
For me and my brothers.”
His father tried to join.
The territorial defence.
In his home town, Sumy.
“But he’s 65 and too old to fight.”
“So when they turned him down.
He phoned me.
And says ‘Can I become?
A part of your unit?’”
“They understand me.
They support me.
Mentally and financially.”
He said in Bakhmut in the summer.
“We have a joke,” he said.
“‘The One’ will be made.
A hero of Ukraine.
For the job he’s done.”
“To unite Ukraine.
To build our economy.
To build our army.
And to make the ‘elves’ nation great.”
Another laughed, “But yeah.
The war is horrible.
But it’s like the price.
For our unity and our country.”
He believes that.
‘Orcs’ soldiers arrived in Ukraine.
A year ago.
Swallowing ‘the One’’s propaganda.
That they would be.
Welcomed as liberators.
And protectors.
Of ‘orcs’ language speakers.
The last year of fighting, he says.
On battlegrounds like Severodonetsk and Bakhmut.
Has wiped out any ‘orcs’ illusions.
About what it would take to beat Ukraine.
They understand, he said, that.
They don’t have friends waiting for them.
“They know that they will enter Bakhmut city.
Only when they will destroy it.”
“When they will kill.
Every ‘elf’ soldier.
Who is defending it…
They understand that.”
“They are fighting.
For territories and.
For some political reasons.
Of their government.”
‘Elves’ soldiers who have served in the east.
Do not have illusions.
Either about an easy victory.
‘Orcs’ have taken huge casualties.
But they are still fighting.
Have capable electronic warfare.
And air defence systems.
And kill and wound many ‘elves’.
‘The One’’s appetite for a war of attrition.
Has not slackened.
‘Orcs’ forces have spent months.
Trying to capture Bakhmut.
Both of them see victory.
The same way as ‘Gandalf the Green’.
Every piece of Ukraine.
Needs to be recaptured.
Another was firm.
“Every inch of ‘elves’ land.
Which were recognized as ‘elves’.
In 1991 should be ‘elves’.”
“We have a joke,” he said.
“‘The One’ will be made.
A hero of Ukraine.
For the job he’s done.”
“To unite Ukraine.
To build our economy.
To build our army.
And to make the ‘elves’ nation great.”
Another laughed, “But yeah.
The war is horrible.
But it’s like the price.
For our unity and our country.”
*Because I read “Ukraine war: The friends who fought Russia’s invasion” by Jeremy Bowen on 24 Feb 2023, and also “Why are Ukrainians calling Russians ‘orcs’?” by James FitzGerald on 30 Apr 2022, on the BBC news.
So, I wrote this poem as a story of Maksym and Dmytro again.
Please read the original stories on the BBC news:
Ukraine war: The friends who fought Russia’s invasion – BBC News
Ukraine war student-turned-soldier: ‘Friends die in your arms’ – BBC News
War in Ukraine: Uni to uniform – Ukraine’s new teenage army recruits – BBC News
**My friend shows you this poem with another my poem together also on the Ukrainian website for their children and others!
Please join them!
