"The whole city was covered in shell holes and devastation"

I remember this date well - 31 July 2014. It was our daughter's birthday.

The AFU troops tried to liberate our city by storm. My wife and I were in the basement. Everything thundered around, it seemed that there was no longer a living place on the earth.

I tried to encourage my wife, but she took it very hard.

The assault had stopped by the morning I knew that my wife would not be able to bear another such attack. We quickly gathered all the necessary and walked to Popasna with two bags, even though it was dangerous. What I saw cannot be expressed in words – the whole city was covered with shell holes, shells and devastation…

After we left home, we spent two months with relatives. But our heart remained there, at home.

We often called our neighbours and asked them how they had fared during the next day. By October 2014, the situation calmed down. We hoped that this would continue, so we returned home on 4 October. But we were wrong in our hopes.

I can't forget that day, 22 December. It seemed that nothing could go wrong. I was watching TV, and my wife was in the next room, talking on the phone.

And then the Grads attacks began. They were launched directed specifically to our area.

My wife and I ran into the bathroom. We hugged. It is difficult to convey the feelings we had that moment. It didn't last more than five minutes, but it is five minutes of fear, pain, despair.

When we came out, we rushed to help our neighbour. The garage with the car was on fire from one of the shells. It was necessary to cut off the fire, so as not to spread to the house.

We spent all night to save the house from burning to the ground. Although it was damaged by shells. And while we were still putting out the fire, one of the local bandits drove into the yard and took a neighbour's second car, which was preserved because it was not in the garage. And no one could do anything when a gun was pointed to your head.

The war changed all our plans completely. We have lost the opportunity to live in our own home and communicate with our neighbours, whose friendship we value. We lost the jobs we had.

Now we live in Kharkiv. The armed hostilities were terminated in our native home. But there are other orders that ordinary people have already begun to get used to. People want peace.

The worst thing about war is losing your family. I dream of peace and stability. The most important thing is that your family is alive and well.