It’s not that we
are unfamiliar with snow and cold temperatures, living in southern Manitoba,
after all. However, this is the first
time that we have been in Ukraine in mid-winter. Last night’s overnight low was -17 C, but
with bright sunshine during the day. The
forecasts are calling for warmer temperatures by next weekend.
We landed in
Dnepropetrovsk as usual, but then stepped off the plane onto an ice-covered
tarmac. A few days earlier the road to
Zaporizhzhia and Molochansk had been closed due to snow. Thankfully this
day it was open, allowing Olga Rubel, our Zaporizhzhia project manager, and Pavel (a driver) to meet us at the
airport. By suppertime we were settling
into our apartment in Molochansk where a pot of borscht prepared by Ira, the Mennonite Centre’s cook, was waiting for us.
Winter is a
challenge here. Natural gas prices are
high, given meager salaries and pensions.
We visited one senior who had just purchased firewood to heat her home. The cost was nearly half of her monthly pension. When
used sparingly, it may heat her home and provide cooking fuel for less than a
month. Coal supplies are unavailable
this winter due to the destruction of mines in the eastern provinces. She was grateful for the package of
food supplies we brought her from the Centre.
Not
surprisingly, we sense a mixture of emotional responses regarding their current
conditions. There is gratitude that the
war has diminished but apprehension at the on-going hostilities;
gratitude for stability in government alongside frustration with the slow pace of economic changes; gratitude for any assistance they receive but fear should pensions or their health fail. Responding to military conscription or
choosing alternative service is a topic that we already heard about in the
Molochansk Mennonite Church service on
Sunday. Unemployment is a perpetual
concern.
We also witness
caring and compassionate relationships.
Katya is 14 years old, a victim of cerebral palsy, cared for by her
parents in their home. Local teachers
have regularly come to her home to provide instruction, with the aid of
computer programs, including German
language. She was delighted to be able
to communicate with us in German. 