"The Grads fired constantly. I woke up covered in blood"

I have lived here for 15 years. I bought this house. Before the war, I lived very well, I didn't need anything. We had coal, everything we needed: wells, water. The children were with us. We worked and kept livestock. We grew many vegetables.

The war broke out in 2014. We were fired at. There was a checkpoint here. Six Grad shells landed in front of my house and eight in my garden. They came and took pictures of everything, "We will record everything." And I'm still on notice.

At first, we watched on TV what was happening in Kyiv squares. Then an air craft flew past us. It was black and heavy. Then they started shooting. Only then did I realize that this was war. 

Even when the second plane flew past us, we wanted to wave at it. I say to my sister, "Galya, don't wave. God forbid they won't understand." 

The Grads fired constantly. I was alone in the house. Windows shattered, I pulled the door on myself, resting on it. I did not know, why I was holding the door. I was shocked. The blast blew the door and me. I didn't remember anything. Where? What?" I woke up covered in blood.

I was scared then. I was afraid I wouldn't see anyone else. My sister's daughter was in Hnutove, helping to slaughter the pigs. Everything was crashing. The roof was completely broken by shrapnel.

I called and shouted to my daughter, "Daughter, please rush home. There is something..." She had to run by the river. The whole settlement was under Grad attack. Then, when I have already moved away, I thought,   Why did I told her to do so? She could be killed! When I was getting out of the basement, she was already at home. I believe that God saved me and the house. Where would I go? I have nowhere to go. 

They are shooting now, but we have already learned to identify where it was coming from. Still, it was scary. I thought, "Maybe it fell down behind the house and is going to explode?" 

After that, I could not sleep properly. My nerves are so frayed that I don't know what to do. The slightest stress, and I can offend both my husband and daughter.

When they start shooting at night, I jump up and run to see what is going on. My daughter lives a little further away. I had to make sure that everything was ok, if a shell did not fell there. We are very disturbed by them at night. There were explosions and fires everywhere. Our place burned for three times.

Nobody cares for us. Now no one has wells in the village. There is no water. There are no shops, we have nothing, an abandoned village. We had no electricity for six months, all the wires were cut off. We didn't get a pension for six months. We are out of coal.

It is good that Rinat Akhmetov is helping us. He sends us cereals, butter. They did a great job. We also received  assistance with food. And they provided financial aid. We appreciate this deeply.

Psychologists came to us advising us to have a rest." I have elevated blood pressure. I am hypertonic, and I suffer from cardiac ischemia. But how can I leave my household? My husband had two strokes. How am I going to leave him? I have geese, chickens, and turkeys. So we have to take care of them.

War brings mischief to people. Everything was ruined. People are suffering. We didn't want this war. Ordinary people are at the receiving end. Shyrokyne was wiped off the ground completely. A few holes were left in the garden where these Grads hit. Nothing grows there any more. It has been five years. All the land is burned by these Grads. I don't think anyone will forget the war.