Silent Fear

Valentína Segečová
Mar 8
4 min read

It has been four years. Why did we stop talking about it? Do we think it is

normal because it has been happening for that long? Or did we just forget about

it because it does not affect us? I can promise you that they did not forget,

because it is a part of their everyday life. They did not just learn how to live

with it. The people, their families and their friends are at risk every single day.

Why do we feel like it is okay now, after all this time?

We complain that we need to wake up to alarms for school, but kids in Ukraine

wake up to sirens, fearing they might not make it to the next day. They need to

check if it is even safe to go to school. The war does not care whether the kids

would actually like to learn for a change. They must know things a child should

never have to know in normal conditions, but for them, this knowledge is the

difference between life and death. Essentials, such as for example where the

closest shelter is, how to act when their city is attacked, where to hide in their

house, what to do if separated from parents, or even how to call for help. Have

become their daily routine and might help them to survive. Yet many of us do

not even know most of these facts. Every lost family member or friend is a

reminder that that this knowledge can save lives.

It is not easy for anyone to lose a close person, but for them, it is a part of

everyday life. You would find children looking at the door, waiting for their dad,

brother, mom, sister or anyone they care about, and when they slowly realise

they might never see them again not even once to at least say goodbye, it breaks

a person just to witness it. But imagine feeling all the grief and sadness yourself.

We complain that the Wi-Fi does not work, and they just wonder if there will be

fresh and clean water tomorrow. If there will be electricity or if they will have

heat in winter. And there is actually nothing they can do about these things, they

just need to find other ways to survive. We do not even realise how hard it is.

We do not have to do anything for it. We just have it. Living like that changes

who the kids are and who they will become. Some are sad, some are mad and

some are just quiet, but no matter how different their emotions are, they will

always have one thing in common. Their childhood was stolen by war.

Maybe we should reconsider what we call a “hard” childhood. Because

childhood should be about learning, playing and feeling safe at home, not about

living in fear and learning how to survive. I am grateful for the normal

childhood I have had, and in their place, I would do anything to have the same.

If this is what children go though, what must it feel like for their parents? Can

you imagine being a parent? Just seeing your child suffer and there is nothing

you can actually do. Child you would die for. And the only thing you can do is

just look at them and say “Everything is going to be alright,” knowing that

might be the biggest lie you have ever told them. You need to learn to be strong.

To at least pretend to be strong in front of them, because you are your child’s

idol and someone they look for comfort and safety. So, if they see you are

scared they will be too. As a parent, you also need to make many crucial

decisions. Such as whether to send your kids alone abroad to safety or to stay

with them, whether to leave everything you worked hard for behind or to stay.

You need to teach your kids what to do and how to take care of themselves if

you were not there for them one day.

So, do we still think it is okay to forget about it just because it does not affect

us? My simple answer to that would be NO. How would we feel if we were in

their position? Fighting for our lives every day and the rest of the world just

simply starts to forget about us and the war we are in. Yeah it is just one of

many wars but that does not mean it matters less. If you had a family or a friend

in that situation you would care. But when you do not know the people does that

mean we can just simply forget about them? Will we really just let it be and

hope that it somehow solves itself? I do not want to live in a world where

suffering becomes background noise. And I do not want to be someone who

simply scrolls past it. Maybe I cannot stop the war myself. But I refuse to let it

become invisible.

Comments

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