‘While living here I risk my life and the lives of my children’

In the winter of 2014, in the early morning hours, a shell landed in the vegetable garden near the neighbouring yard. And when we came outside, a wall of our kitchen fell down. The children were at home, lying in my bed. I did not let them go to school at that time. I don’t let them go to school when there is active fighting.

At first, our windowpanes began to shatter. When we went out, we saw that the wall fell down! We were in a state of shock. We do not have money to restore it all. My husband is not employed, I am not employed either. We are staying at home. We live from our livestock. I get some childcare payments.

My husband used to work in the nearby village. I used to work in a private enterprise. It was somewhat easier and we could earn enough for living. Now, when the war is ongoing, the prices have grown up. Life has changed and there is not money enough for food, for children’s clothes. The price for electricity has grown up too. We have to make do.

I am very worried.

When heavy shelling began, I took the children away, because shells from Grad rocket launchers started to land. I took the kids and went to Donske. I lived in a hostel, in one room. We lived there for two years. Well, you know, living in one room with three children… And the owners started raising the rent. Therefore, we came back here again.

There used to be some collective farms and private entrepreneurs here. We could find some job there. Now the fields are mined. People stay unemployed. They are afraid to take risks. A man driving a tractor was blown up on a mine.

I hope that this war will end soon. I’m fed up with it. And my children are tired of it too.