A battle between hate and love

We can do much better than simply let hate take the command

WHY DO PEOPLE INTERACT AND PAY much more attention to bad news than good ones? This is something I've been increasingly thinking about as I get to know the dynamics of social media, a world I was largely unaware of until the Russian invasion. Is it because negative happenings wake a feeling of urgency, lifting the instinct of self-protection or maybe solidarity? I don't have answers, just questions. 

Being a representative voice of Ukraine, however, sometimes brings me some uncomfortable thoughts about if my role here, by writing and sharing impressions about the war, has been generating the right sentiments on those who kindly read my words. I strongly believe that reality must be exposed. There's no shortage of truth in my essays as well as those from many other fellow compatriots who do a great job delivering their perceptions, but, for what? On which intention?

Certainly, the number one reason and the one which inspired me to develop a blog journey, is to raise awareness of Ukraine. To show the world something beyond the news outlets, to ensure our international community of good people don't forget the absurdity of the situation and our existence at stake. Anyway, so many months later, I think I personally would like to go further than simply release our anguish. Go further than raising empathy towards Ukraine, compassion towards Ukrainians.

I'm worried now about the impact of this war on the amazing people abroad who closely follow the news about us and have a heart broken into pieces since February of 2023. Supporting Ukraine has long ceased to be a question of geopolitical stance, it has turned out to be a matter of integrity. It has become, throughout the world, an authentic seal of good character. And I need to remember you, our supporter, are a great human being for advocating for the side of justice and freedom. 

It's not because I'm Ukrainian, one could forget that for a while. It's because justice is an undeniable and universal aspect of civilization.

Amidst so much suffering, there is a lot about love, friendship, hope, and union to be written. This nation has never been joined under so much cooperation among people who are complete strangers but have in common only the fact of being Ukrainian and the love for Ukraine. We needed the worst to find out the immense human value of each and every soul. We understood that we have to be better than only looking at every single person in this soil as a source of partnership. We learned that loving Ukraine means loving each other.

We aren't afraid to seem excessive when saying that loving each other is the most powerful weapon we have in our hands. Loving each other is much more than admiring and respect: it is a development of a real alliance of human effort with a common goal and ultimate commitment to mutual objectives. We will never forget the injustices, we will never cease to hate Russia for everything, but the perception of hate inside us is nothing when it's taken close to the immense love we have been shaping inside ourselves.

Having said that, we then come back with the impact I want to inspire on my international readers, among them some of the most wonderful people one could ever meet in a lifetime. You deserve from me more than manifests of desperation, there's much about the beauty of life going on that you need to know. Certainly not as a way to deny the dark side of humanity, but just to recall that even the worst of circumstances are possible to be overcome. 

Even the most complicated scenarios may potentially be managed somehow when we rescue the best features of our existences while leaving feelings like hate to a secondary scope.

It's easy to hate Russia, and this will probably be a strong sentiment for generations. But we can do much better than summarize our minds around the easy feelings. I want to focus on the love and the strength that comes from it. This is our real asset. This is the conceptual advantage that the good ones have to win any battles or wars in their lives.

Being that personal and transitory battles, or collective wars involving millions or billions of souls.

My dream is to make people think about love, at least before any other feeling, when they think about Ukraine.

And so expand this spirit into other parts of their lives.

This would be a fabulous mission to be accomplished for us.