(essay)

What makes each person of their respective nationality who they are? The place of birth? Ancestral roots? Religion? Skin color? None of this. But then how to determine the nationality of a particular person?

As practice has shown us, it is not enough to be born in a certain place and country in order to later prove to everyone with foam at the mouth that “I am a citizen of this country, period.” If you do not have a connection in your soul with the nation to which you belong, and you do not share its moral principles and values, then you really do something wrong! Have you seen the Germans unfamiliar with the term punctuality? And have you come across the English people who ignore queues? Maybe they happened, but they were probably tourists. In the same way, you cannot find a real Ukrainian in Ukraine who would not care about freedom — his or her own or the freedom of the whole country. By the roots of generations, the struggle goes far in depth of history and is in our blood, it is not possible to forget and get rid of it so easily. Especially now, in the time of the merciless Ukrainian-Russian war. Therefore, you can call yourself a representative of a certain nation only when the values ​​of your country, culture and history are important to you and engraved in your heart. If the country is well, so are the people who live in it, if it hurts because of something, it hurts people as well. It cannot be one-sided, because otherwise the meaning is destroyed.

If this applies to all nations, why is it currently relating to Ukraine or Ukrainians? It’s simple, we, unlike the same Italians, Dutch, Americans, etc., almost every century have to prove to the whole world that we are a separate nation and not an offshoot of rashists. Every time we open the world’s eyes to the horrors and the price paid by Ukrainians for the right to call themselves who they are. However, sooner or later the world closes its eyes and we hear stupid statements about “brotherly nations” and “it’s all just a misunderstanding.” So, in addition to being loyal to their country, values​​, and culture, the Ukrainians must fight to be the Ukrainians. Incessantly, day and night, to blood and tears. Each of us has our own front, given the field of activity, and the principle is one and the same — to fight for ourselves, for our will and for Ukraine.

So, what makes Ukrainians Ukrainians? The willingness to fight for ourselves, our native lands, the respect for history, ardent love for freedom, The Ukrainian language, uniting the whole nation, and much, much more. We cannot stand silently and watch when someone wants to bring our Motherland and all Ukrainians to their knees and force them to obey the orders of some dictator. When it hurts our hearts, when it clings to our souls, it is impossible to remain silent.