Aleksandra Indikt
Ukraine, Kyiv
Israel, Tel Aviv
“I was born in Dnipro in 1992, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, when Ukraine was already independent, so I don’t know any other reality. My childhood in Ukraine was happy, and I had a good, joyful life until the Russian invasion. Until the last moment, I didn’t truly believe that the Russians would start a war against us. I remember being alone at home with my cat – Nuts, when suddenly alarms sounded. Checking my cellphone, I saw a message from a good friend of mine, informing me that the war, which I hadn’t believed would break out, had begun.
Until the very end, I refused to believe that a war was imminent. I was in denial. I didn’t stock up on emergency supplies, didn’t pack a suitcase in case I needed to flee, and barely paid attention to the news. I desperately wanted to believe that war wouldn’t actually happen, but unfortunately, it did.
When the war broke out, I didn’t really know what I was supposed to do.
I called my boss and naively asked him if I should come to work? He told me that he canceled all our activities and I should go buy food and withdraw money from the nearest cash machine. My emergency supplies that I bought included a bottle of Gin, Nutella spread, canned tuna and food for my cat. I didn’t want to stay home alone, so I took Nuts and went to my friends, who also have two cats, and that’s how we found ourselves at the beginning of the war – three grown up people with three cats trying to defend themselves from the Russian bombings.
The advantage of being a refugee for the second time is the experience you already have. So, when I arrived in Israel, I knew exactly what I was supposed to do as soon as there were alarms. If there is no shelter, run to the stairwell and wait a few minutes for the attack to end. The positive aspect of the situation in Israel is the Iron Dome missile defense system, which can intercept and neutralize incoming missiles. In contrast, Ukraine lacks a similar system, leaving Ukrainians to hope that missiles won’t land directly on their homes.
I left Ukraine with just two suitcases and my automatic vacuum cleaner and arrived in Israel. I didn’t cry. Instead, I felt proud of myself for facing the challenges and striving to build a new life in Israel despite all the difficulties of being a refuge.
On October 7th I was in Tel Aviv and the alarms started… I called my (new) boss again… I went to my girlfriend (this time without the cat) and I slept at her place. I felt like I was already in this movie. Some people will not experience even one war in their whole lifetime and I have already experienced two wars. I think this experience made me appreciate my life much more. I discovered that I am much stronger than I thought, I’ve learned not to let fear control me, even in the face of being a refugee”.