668 day of war

Hello, friends!

This week, the festive mood is already in the air. In the city center, they have set up a Christmas tree adorned with patriotic ornaments featuring airplanes, symbols of various events from the past year, and emblems of different brigades currently at war. The cities look quite surreal, with shops decorated with Christmas ornaments, people stocking up on holiday groceries, the distant sounds of air raid sirens and anti-aircraft gunfire, and groups of people in military uniforms distributing invitations to enlist. After nearly two years of war, such a way of life has become routine, and it's hard to remember when things were different.

Having watched the president's year-end press conference, the impression is that the country is indeed facing difficult times. The president looked visibly tired, and the problems he addressed explain his condition. The only positive aspect he mentioned is the continuation of assistance to internally displaced persons who have lost their homes. Previously, a new law was proposed that would almost cancel all payments, which, as I mentioned earlier, would be a complete disaster for many people. To avoid worrying, I've been contemplating this situation and was confident that the payments would continue. It seems that it will, but we still need to wait for the final version of the new law and hope that the state won't abandon us.

Among the rather grim news is a new large-scale mobilization of almost half a million people. This is indeed a significant number, considering that we currently have only about a million military personnel. Where they will find so many people is unknown, but various mechanisms are already being developed to prevent avoiding mobilization. As the war progresses, the need for people on the front lines becomes even greater.

The most disheartening aspect is that, for several months now, there has been a shortage of ammunition and equipment on the front lines. How they will provide for the new mobilized individuals is also unknown.

Now I don't really want to be upset because of the difficulties the country is going through,. We endured when the troops stood near Kyiv, managed through a long period, and I believe we will cope with all the problems, even though it may be very challenging. Before the holidays, there's not much energy to deeply reflect on this. We'll see all the documents and innovations next month, and it will become clearer what to expect next.

This year, for the first time, the entire Ukraine will celebrate Christmas on the new calendar date—December 25. I was pleasantly surprised that the majority of people embraced the transition to the new date positively, and already, there are long lines in all the stores with people looking for something interesting for the festive table. We are also preparing for the holiday, cleaning the apartment after very busy workdays, and we're very excited that we can finally take a few days off and relax. As always during the holidays, we'll be cooking many delicious dishes, making gingerbread cookies as a gift for our parents, and we also received a festive panettone as a gift, so I think we will have a great time during these days.

Thank you all for your support. I'm glad I have someone to share my thoughts with. I wish everyone a wonderful Christmas holiday!
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