In Remembrance...

When I was a small kid I liked watching those parades on May, 9th. Some days on TV and some days we would put on our best clothes and go to the central square to enjoy it live.

I remember lots of old people wearing military uniform with ordens and medals.
I remember expression on their faces when they met an old friend whom they had not seen for years.
I remember their tears when they talked about the ones who didnt make it to this Victory Day.

I used to ask my mom what is so special about this day. And she always replied it was a day to give our thanks to people who had fought for the defence of our country. A day on which we should learn how to be grateful for our lives.

When i was in school our history teacher revealed the fact that over 20 million Soviet people were killed during that war. When you are 11-12 years old you do not really realise how shocking big this number is. You just learn it as the fact which might be asked in another exam.

But we knew that we won that war, and we knew that our grandfathers and grandmothers were there to protect their children, our moms and dads. We knew that if not for them we would not have gotten this chance to live. We knew how to be grateful.

The latest russian history textbooks say that USA won the World War 2. Maybe they consider the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki as the final point of it, just like a proof who is the most powerful one. In some ex-Soviet Republics, todays independent countries they remove monuments and memorials dedicated to those soldiers who once saved their cities from Nazi's occupation. Soviet military forces are declared occupants and ex-Nazis get these ordens and medals and graditude which belongs to those fighting for their own and their kids' life and independence.

Today the world has changed. Not for better.
Today we fail to see what is good and what is bad.
Today we take too many things for granted.
Today we do not know anymore what it means to be grateful.

Today we are re-writing the HISTORY.

I don't care what crap these pro-american text-books say.
I don't care that some countries' leaders are too blind to realise what is goodness and what is evil.
I don't care for those who declare us occupants and murderers.

People can talk as much as they want to about damn communism and totalitarism, repressions and tortures. There indeed had been a lot of good and bad in the history but none of this will ever change the fact that our grandfathers and grandmothers were ready to die for our confident future. That they have protected my country and half of Europe at the cost of their lives. If not for them there would not be any Russia, any Europe and maybe even any US for that matter.

In Russia almost every family has at least one person who took part in that war. And the number of those who survived is getting less every year. Most of them are over 80 by now. And the less this number is the more should our gratitude be.

And when i see 80% of cars in my home city having these special St. George Ribbons as the sign of our remembrance and commemoration, it feels good to know that people care, people remember, people are grateful.