“I can’t imagine living in another city. I hope I can stay here until the end of my life” – In conversation with Varya Lushchyk

An interview taken from our new digital issue FIGHTERS! Throughout the last couple of months, many Ukrainians have stepped up to support their community in one way or another – be that by collecting donations, helping the elderly, or rebuilding houses. We’ve spoken to Varya, a 21-year-old from Kyiv. She’s been working at one of Kyiv’s most beloved Cafés, Lypa, where she’s also ended up volunteering at the beginning of the war.

Varya and I caught up on Face-Time, where she showed me a beautiful sunset in Kyiv. We had a long conversation about the last couple of months, how she’s stepped up to do so much at such a young age and the stories she hears from the people in liberated villages.

To read the full interview, please check out our 19th Digital Issue here.


KALTBLUT: You’re so young! You’re getting your youth stolen by the pandemic and the war.

Varya: That’s actually a joke of mine. I should be studying at university right now, but first, there was a pandemic and now war.

KALTBLUT: You’re still studying at university now?

Varya: No, I dropped out of university. I’m slowly starting to get back into it because when the war started, I was volunteering a lot at the café where I was working. 

The café is called Lypa. We turned the café into a shelter for people who needed it. The café is in a basement, so it was safer. Some people ended up living there. We were looking after them and also started cooking for the hospitals, old people and our military – basically for everyone who was in need. It was strange living at my place of work for three months. 

But you know, when you’re here, you keep thinking whatever you do isn’t enough. I’m not in the military, I can’t make this city safe. I’m always thinking I’m not doing enough.

KALTBLUT: Wow, that’s incredible.

Varya: When you’re here, you keep thinking whatever you do isn’t enough. I’m not in the military, I can’t make this city safe. I’m always thinking I’m not doing enough.

KALTBLUT: I understand that. I think to a certain extent, everyone has that feeling of not doing enough. How are you dealing with the mental impact of what you’ve experienced and what your country is experiencing? Are you already starting to process it?

Varya: There was a moment when I was thinking: enough! I broke my toe and could only walk with crutches. I was lying in my bed and I heard explosions and the air raid sirens. I couldn’t go to the shelter fast enough because of that broken toe and the crutches. So, I was just lying there, accepting whatever would happen. But, it’s slowly getting better. It’s summer now, the weather is still good, and we have beautiful sunsets. That’s kind of putting me in a good mood at the moment.

Varya in the hardware store with her broken toe. Photo provided by Varya

KALTBLUT: What are the winters like in Kyiv?

Varya: Winter in Kyiv is depressing. The days are really short, only six hours or so, there’s a lot of snow, and it’s freezing cold. I don’t like winter. I just really hope we will be able to heat our homes in the winter and the gas won’t be too expensive. I’m only starting to slowly make money again, and I can’t save anything because everything is so expensive.

KALTBLUT: I completely understand you. I feel especially young people are the ones who are affected the most. So besides working, you’re also volunteering. What are the kinds of things you’re seeing or hearing when you speak to the people you help?

Varya: At the beginning of the war, it wasn’t as scary as it is now. We were volunteering in villages in the Chernihiv Region. Those villages were all under Russian occupation. We rebuild houses that were destroyed and burned out and the people in those villages tell us horrible, scary stories. Many of those stories are of Russian soldiers living in their houses, threatening them with their guns and demanding them to cook for them. Other stories of Russian soldiers eating the dogs of old grandpas and grandmas. The stories range from killing to torture and animal abuse.

Photo provided by Varya

The people in most villages don’t need that much food, as they’re growing a lot of it by themselves. But they really need help with their houses, because winter is coming. Right now, many of them are living in their chicken coops or barns. 

KALTBLUT: It’s absolutely barbaric. Would you say that the volunteers are mainly young people?

Varya: In my group, we’re a group of friends. They’re all older than me, between 25 and 30 years old. It’s mainly men, too. We became friends when we were living at the Lypa café. They’re like friends from a previous life. We formed this group and started by sending out humanitarian aid. Then we saw all the broken windows and decided to cover them with cling film. It was only the beginning of spring, which meant it was still cold. That’s when we decided we needed to do more. 

The people in most villages don’t need that much food, as they’re growing a lot of it by themselves. But they really need help with their houses, because winter is coming. Right now, many of them are living in their chicken coops or barns. 

KALTBLUT: It’s incredible what you and your friends are doing. Can you walk me through the process of what you’re doing with the donations you’re receiving and how you’re distributing the humanitarian aid?

Varya: The money I receive comes from mainly Ukrainian people. In the beginning, we asked people from abroad to send food, and when the supermarkets reopened, we were buying most of the things there. Stuff for rebuilding the houses we buy from builders. 

Photo provided by Varya

KALTBLUT: What does your life look like right now? You’ve mentioned earlier that everything is feeling a bit more normal, and you’re starting to go back to work.

Varya: Life in Kyiv feels like it’s back to normal – Summer here is really cool and there are even some parties and events. On the other hand, you still have people collecting money for the army, and the war is always present. Sometimes, it’s the air raid sirens, and sometimes, when I come back home in the morning, I ask myself what the fuck I’m doing; this isn’t the time for partying.

It always comes back to what we were talking about at the beginning, whatever you do, it’s not enough. You keep on moving, buying more stuff, and volunteering whenever I can. I also have a lot of responsibility, because I’m receiving the money for the donations on my bank account. So, I need to constantly check everything. Generally, a lot of the organization is on me.  

None of those things are as scary as checking the news, though.

KALTBLUT: How are you dealing with your mental health? 

Varya: It’s raining a lot in Kyiv right now, and sometimes there are thunderstorms. You see a lot of people looking for shelter when they hear thunder because they think they’re being shelled again. You notice how similar thunder sounds to explosions.

The people that stayed in Ukraine, they will have this problem for a long time. And the people abroad will have this feeling of not doing enough, and not having a home anymore.

I think my main message would be to please not forget about us.

KALTBLUT: If there’s one thing you could tell the people around the world, what would it be?

Varya: Sometimes when I look at the stories people post from abroad, I get a little jealous, because I can’t enjoy my life like that, I can’t party. I would ask the world please not to forget that we have a war here. I can sit outside now only because of the Ukrainian army.

I remember the day when in there were a lot of protests in Europe in support of Ukraine. I was looking through my Instagram and saw all the posts, and it was so comforting to see that a lot of people are still thinking about us. We are not lost. People haven’t forgotten about us, and they care! I think my main message would be to please not forget about us.

Varya with her volunteer group. Photo provided by Varya

If you want to donate to Varya and her friends, you can do so via the following links. You can also follow her on Instagram @varyalushchyk, where she posts regular updates.

Ukrainians can donate via Varya’s Monobank link here, and internationals can donate to this PayPal account: zamai_georgia@protonmail.com 

All photos are provided courtesy of Varya Lushchyk.