Ukraine I hear from LondonUkraine I hear from London
Это стихотворение было написано в первую неделю вторжения России в Украину, начавшегося 24 февраля 2022. Друзья Ганны жили в Киеве, Харькове, Буче и других украинских городах. В своей документальной поэме она использовала фрагменты переписки с ними и их публикации в социальных сетях.
Tämä runo kirjoitettu ensimmäisellä viikolla sen jälkeen, kun Venäjä hyökkäsi Ukrainaan 24. helmikuuta 2022. Hannalla oli ystäviä Kiovassa, Harkovassa, Butšassa ja muissa Ukrainan kaupungeissa. Tässä dokumentaarisessa runossa hän käyttää otteita keskusteluista heidän kanssaan sekä heidän sosiaalisen median päivityksistään.
Это стихотворение было написано в первую неделю вторжения России в Украину, начавшегося 24 февраля 2022. Друзья Ганны жили в Киеве, Харькове, Буче и других украинских городах. В своей документальной поэме она использовала фрагменты переписки с ними и их публикации в социальных сетях.
Tämä runo kirjoitettu ensimmäisellä viikolla sen jälkeen, kun Venäjä hyökkäsi Ukrainaan 24. helmikuuta 2022. Hannalla oli ystäviä Kiovassa, Harkovassa, Butšassa ja muissa Ukrainan kaupungeissa. Tässä dokumentaarisessa runossa hän käyttää otteita keskusteluista heidän kanssaan sekä heidän sosiaalisen median päivityksistään.
[Did you tape up your windows?
Only in one room. All the tape has been bought up]
it’s a privilege
not to have to
tape up my window
from flying glass
of air raids
no one is bombarding this city
[There’s just been a huge explosion,
so the window pane got trembling]
when it’s windy
the sash is snapping
against the frame
like distant shots
i tuck a folded paper
in‑between
so that the shots
would not reach me
[About 40 hours, and we’re safe.
I’ll tell you about our “journey” later.
Thank you for being there 💔
And take care!]
when the trains pass nearby
i think they carry
tanks and missiles
and i look for the tape
i find its end, prepare
then i force myself
to wake up
from this nightmare
[First I used to freak out about every tiny
knock on the door, now
I freak out about the sound
of suitcase wheels, because
it resembles a flying bomber. What a life,
a blockbuster. But I can still laugh about it,
this means we’ll survive.]
the planes to
Copenhagen or Tallinn
sound like the washing
machine drum
in the basement
where my mind runs
to a shelter
while my body remains
in the room
heavy like pressure
of cargo trains
on the track
[Girls! We may be
shelled by Grads
today. I want to tell you
that I love each of you, and
I’m proud to know you! You are the
best women in this country.
Fight and win! ❤️]
The raindrops
falling on my window
wake me up
like artillery shelling
it’s that season in London
[We’ve managed to leave Kiev
by hitchhiking. Everywhere
there are big traffic jams, lots
of vehicles and soldiers,
and bombers flying.
Take care ❤️]
whatever my English
landlady watches on tv
I hear
[We’re still walking.
We’ll spend the night and,
probably, another day
there. Out there.]
[I’m in Lviv
In a shelter for the evacuated]
[Today we are in Sanok town. We could wash ourselves and eat.
Our arms, backs and legs are nearly dead. But what a
happiness it is to sleep horizontally!]
[We are exhausted both emotionally and
physically, hands are still shaking badly. Our journey to
the safe place, plus a stop in Lviv, took over 60
hours.]
every step on the floor
of this Victorian house
is a hammering
[Explosions again. A shot down
aircraft fell somewhere near
my building, on residential houses.]
London is sleeping.
But we are not.
[We are ready and we aren’t scared]