These past two weeks, my heart strings have been plucked by my ancestors from Hungary, Poland, and Romania as the unprovoked war between the freedom-loving Ukrainians and the hate-filled Russians continues.  Whether we want to believe it or not, most Caucasian Americans have connections to Eastern European nations.  The connection might be very small, but it is still there.  The people of that area are in our blood.  I, for one, am very proud of the Ukrainians; they are putting up a courageous fight to save their country.  In years past, my ancestors had to shed their blood in WWII against the Nazis and in 1956 against the Communists.  So it is hard for me to put into words how I truly feel about a people who, once again, are fleeing their homes for the safety of their families, but I will try.

I wonder how it feels to leave everything you’ve worked so hard for, and to know, if you can return to your country, your possessions will be in ruins.  I have lost two husbands, but my heart is aching for the boys, fathers, husbands, and grand fathers that have stayed behind to fight the Russians.  After one day, I put my clothes in the hamper to be washed in a few days; the refugees left home with only the clothes on their backs, having worn them for two weeks.  Although we have supply issues in this country and prices have gone up for everything such as food, housing, energy, and oil, I have enough to eat; Ukrainian refugees are starving.  I have a roof over my head; the struggling Ukrainian women, children, and the elderly have been walking for days, lucky to get a train ride or a bus ride to stay overnight in a cold train station or bus station in a foreign, neighboring country.  I thank God for those neighboring countries, my ancestors, because they are truly being “Christ with flesh on” for all of the refugees that are pouring into their countries.  I am appalled and fearful that Vladimir Putin is willing to use nuclear weapons on this area and anyone who is unfriendly to Russia, but I am reminded that America, in an effort to bring WWII to an end with the Japanese, developed two atomic bombs.  The nuclear age gave us so many advances, but it also gave us weapons that have the capability of killing everyone on the earth in a matter of seconds.  Albert Einstein was shunned when he said that if we fought a third world war, we’d be fighting it with sticks and stones.  It scares me that he might not have been far from wrong when it comes to a country with a mad dictator like Vladimir Putin at the helm.  Let’s not forget how the blood of all of us has covered miles of these countries before, a different time and aggressor but still painful and devastating.

To all of these thoughts and questions, I have but one answer.  We need God to intervene, and love and hope to counter the anger and hate of Russia.  My faith is strong, and I am praying that the faith and courage of the Ukrainians, my brothers and sisters, will carry them through to freedom, a freedom that so many Americans take for granted.  As an artist musician and writer, I look to the words of the Ukrainian national anthem for peace and comfort.  Even as their blood is being shed, God will see them through this war and onto a new world of prosperity.  As the melodies of “Schlindler’s List,” “The Pianist,” “Band of Brothers,” “The Mission,” and every national anthem of every nation on the earth run through my soul and heart, ponder with me the words of this strong, powerful national anthem.

Shche ne vmerla Ukrania

Ukraine has not died yet, brothers,

Neither fame nor freedom,

Destiny will smile yet brightly

Upon us, young kinsmen.

All our foes will surely perish

Like our dew under sunray,

We shall lord it, too, dear brothers,

In our native country.

We lay down our soul and body

For freedom in battle,

And will prove that we are, brothers,

Men of Cossack mettle.

(Paul Chubinsky and Mikhail Verbitsky)

(National Anthems from Around the World, Hal Leonard, 1995)

My heart and soul reaches out across the Atlantic Ocean, past my ancestral countries, and to you, the Ukraine.  May you know God’s grace, love, and healing.  May He grant you peace to accept the things you cannot change, courage to change the things you can, and the wisdom to know the difference. (Serenity Prayer)

Anna Hartt