BEYOND THE RUBBLE: DREAMING OF PEACE IN UKRAINE
The sound of sirens has become the lullaby of Ukraine. What was once a land of bustling cities, warm kitchens, and the laughter of children is now scarred by explosions that split the night sky. Streets that should echo with school bells and market chatter are lined with rubble. And beneath that rubble lie stories too painful to retell—innocent women and children who never asked to be part of this war.3 years ago,I held up an olive branch for peace in Ukraine and Hiveans responded positively in solidarity,let's pray this time for Ukraine, for the women and children.
Every day, headlines remind us of the horror, but behind the statistics are real lives. A child clutching a teddy bear in one hand while reaching for a missing parent with the other. A mother shielding her baby in a subway station that now serves as a bomb shelter. Families torn apart at train stations—fathers staying behind to fight, while wives and children flee into the unknown. These are not just images on a screen; they are human tragedies unfolding in real time.
I cannot help but pray. I pray for the women who go to bed not knowing if their husbands will return from the front. I pray for the children whose childhoods have been replaced with fear. I pray for the elderly who cannot run and are left behind in shattered villages. And I pray for the end of a war that continues to rob people of their right to live in peace.
The cruelty of war is not only in the deaths it causes but in the way it fractures hearts and families. A little girl should be learning how to write her name, not how to distinguish the sound of incoming shells. A mother should be packing lunchboxes, not emergency bags. A father should be planning family vacations, not whispering last goodbyes at a train platform.
Yet, even in the shadow of destruction, the resilience of the human spirit shines. I see it in the volunteers who risk everything to bring food to starving towns. I see it in the teachers who continue lessons online from bunkers. I see it in the children who, despite everything, still find the strength to smile.
And so, I hold onto hope. Hope that peace will soon silence the guns. Hope that families will embrace once again without fear of separation. Hope that the children of Ukraine will trade the sound of bombs for the sound of playground swings.
Until then, I will keep praying—for peace, for healing, and for the day when Ukraine’s story is no longer written in blood, but in resilience, unity, and love.