There was this landowner Berdychiv who lived here before the revolution. The village was named after his name. I was born here. I am the seventh child. I am almost 80 years old.
There were a lot of people here, but now everyone has run away. Only old people are left. There were about 500 people here before. Now only 150 live here.
The village was shelled so heavily in 2014-2015 that we could hear it here very loudly. Everything was shaking. I fell from the sofa because of that awful sound. It was terrible. Shells fell everywhere. Houses were on fire.
It was so bad. Our house was built a long time ago. My mother built it. The house was literally falling apart due to the attacks. That night was like day — everything was on fire. It lasted two or three years. The first two years – 2014 -2015 were especially severe. I didn't want to leave though. I was born here and ... and I thought it would end one day or another.
Life is hard. We get miserable pensions. If it wasn't for my three children, I wouldn't have made it. You can't make a living on a pension like this. My son comes three times a year. He lives in Lyman. He comes to see me and help me with gardening. I am always busy. I have some land to take of.
I am a Shakhtar fan and have always been at the Donbass Arena. I went to watch football with my son. I wanted him to come back. I wish Shakhtar would play in the Donbass Arena, and not in Lviv or in Kharkiv.
I wish it this horror ended and peace came to our land. I have three children and five grandchildren. All children and granddaughters come here to visit me. It's a blessing when they are all here with us.
