What impresses me

the most is what

I see in my work

every day:

I see life

despite the war.

I am very impressed

at work

when I can capture

soldiers returning alive

to their families.

There is one story,

about a boy being evacuated,

his name is Oleksandr (Sasha).

So Sasha is 12 years old,

he is an international

award-winning pianist.

He used to always come to Kharkiv

to practice his music.

And it was very difficult for him

find an instrument to play on,

so volunteers raised the money

and bought him a piano.

Now, he continues to perform

in Europe

and in Ukraine

including at our charity events.

And he was so happy.

This is just one child's dream,

but it stands as a

powerful symbol

of resilience in the Ukrainian spirit

and support for each other.

Since we are

very close to

the front line

and to Russia,

a Russian missile

would only take about

40 seconds

to reach Kharkiv.

This gives us

no possibility

for having any big events,

and everything we do,

must be done following

some basic

safety procedures

and has to be performed

only in shelters,

which limits us

as a theatre.

It is freezing

in Ukraine right now.

I arrived at a strike zone

and many people needed help.

I was recording an interview

on my phone

and held my hand

without a glove

for about 1.5 minute outside.

Honestly,

I couldn't feel my hand

for about

half an hour after that.

The volunteers

and humanitarian workers

worked overnight from 2 a.m.

until 10 a.m.

until they completed

all the work.

This episode

allowed us to understand

how resilient

Ukrainian society

and its citizens are.

Kharkiv is close to

the Russian border

and even closer to the front line.

Right now, Kharkiv is

a city

already adapting to a

condition of constant danger.

Children study in

underground schools.

People might be

having dinner

in a cafe

while witnessing

explosions happening

on the street closeby.

People are used

to air raid sirens,

Unfortunately, people and children

are used to

constant shelling.

Anti-shatter film

on windows

is now standard practice

to prevent

injuries.

The tourniquet,

is something

which almost every active

Kharkiv resident

who is ready help is carrying.

First aid training

has become commonplace.

I should probably

also say that for us,

staying at home

is essentially a privilege now.

As I sit here,

I’m actually already thinking

about going back home,

because every time you leave,

you subconsciously

fear that you might not

be able to return.

It might seem "normal"

to have a hometown,

but before 2022,

I never thought I could lose this.

So,

what used to be

something taken for granted

is now truly a privilege.

I don’t have motivation,

because motivation is

something that is here today

and gone tomorrow.

I have discipline,

and so does my team.

Discipline to come to work,

the discipline to help people,

and the discipline

to always be where

we need to be

with the affected population.

This discipline allows us

to organise work

and to do it quickly,

which is very important.

Therefore, my only motivation

is the people

who are grateful to us.

Obviously, I fear for my life,

which is normal,

but...

fear must not stop us

from doing our work,

even in the context

of a full-scale invasion.

It seems like Ukrainians

can adapt

to almost anything,

and every time

we’re truly surprised

like, wow!

"We actually endured

this too!"

We managed to process it

and keep moving forward.

But, of course,

we wish

these circumstances

didn't exist,

so we could

simply have space

for development

rather than just for survival.