God, grant me the strength of a Ukrainian grandmother
There are so many stories coming out of Ukraine right now as it defends itself against an illegal action by Russia. It is easy to become sad, confused, and irate. It’s also easy to feel helpless.
Besides prayers, there are places you can donate money to help through established channels such as UNICEF, Doctors Without Borders (Médecins sans frontìeres), and World Kitchen. This article in TIME has additional resources, from Sunflower of Peace to United Help Ukraine, which were established in 2014 when Russia illegally annexed Crimea.
Also? You can continue to push your representatives to do what can be done to support Ukraine.
And finally, you can do something—anything at all—to spread a bit of joy in this world, whether it’s writing a story or creating art to doing something kind for someone (yourself included). Because if we all curl inward on ourselves, then the bad guys have indeed won.
Here is a link to the first of many posts about lowering your anxiety. I especially recommend limiting your consumption of news and social media channels that push nonstop coverage of what’s going on, and also doing what you can to ground yourself so you don’t end up spinning (or sick). Here’s a link to a post entitled “In times of turmoil and uncertainty, GROUND YOURSELF.”
Today, I am sharing two stories that center Ukrainian women—specifically, older ones.
The first is a Ukrainian woman who marches up to a Russian soldier in the square. If you have heard any reporting on it, you may have heard that she offers him sunflower seeds to put in his pockets so that flowers will grow when he dies and is buried in Ukraine. Here’s a link to the video. And here is a translation of their “conversation.”
