In the midst of the word he was trying to say,
In the midst of his laughter and glee,
He had softly and suddenly vanished away—
For the Snark was a Boojum, you see.
When she finished school.
She didn’t know.
What she wanted to be.
So she took up a job.
As a barista.
Then she became.
Then she became.
Fascinated by drones.
– the nimble, deadly aircraft.
That have become.
Centrepieces of the war.
In Ukraine –
And in March 2025.
Joined the army.
Joined the army.
“I first held the position.”
“Of unmanned systems.
Duty officer.
And then became.
An FPV operator.”
“It’s a Snark!” was the sound that first came to their ears,
And seemed almost too good to be true.
Then followed a torrent of laughter and cheers:
Then the ominous words “It’s a Boo—”
Since then, she, now 19.
Has found that.
Being a woman.
In the armed forces.
Being a woman.
In the armed forces.
“Was and still is.
The most difficult thing”.
“You constantly.
Have to prove.
You are worthy of.
Doing the job.”
“And on an equal footing.
With others.”
“And on an equal footing.
With others.”
Then, silence. Some fancied they heard in the air
A weary and wandering sigh
That sounded like “-jum!” but the others declare
It was only a breeze that went by.
In the 11 months.
Since signing up.
She has learned.
About happiness.
“Time with loved ones.
Love, delicious food.”
She lists.
“Being close to your family.”
“Not being afraid that.
You won’t wake up tomorrow.”
“Not being afraid that.
You won’t wake up tomorrow.”
They hunted till darkness came on, but they found
Not a button, or feather, or mark,
By which they could tell that they stood on the ground
Where the Baker had met with the Snark.
”Before, I didn’t have.
A clear concept.
Of values in this life.
Due to my age.”
“Now, I feel.
Completely different.”
“Now, I feel.
Completely different.”
In the midst of the word he was trying to say,
In the midst of his laughter and glee,
He had softly and suddenly vanished away—
For the Snark was a Boojum, you see.
*Because I read “Civilians to soldiers: how four years of war has changed ordinary Ukrainians” by Laura Gozzi on 21 Feb 2026, 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 Anastasiia, led by ‘The Hunting of the Snark’ written by Lewis Carroll, you know.
Please read the original story on the BBC news:
Civilians to soldiers: how four years of war has changed ordinary Ukrainians
