Veronika from the city of Lozova in the Kharkiv region had a bright teenage life: constant performances, dance competitions, school activities. On February 23, she was learning a poem for a lesson that she never recited, and a month later she was fleeing the war in the vestibule of an evacuation train. Her story is a journey from losing everything to therapy, accepting her reality, and returning to creativity.
An unlearned poem and the fear of occupation
Veronika’s teenage life was turbulent: thanks to dancing, she traveled to many cities in Ukraine and abroad. On February 24, the girl woke up to a bunch of messages from friends. Her mother, surprisingly, remained calm, but for Veronika herself, this day was the beginning of a life of constant stress and an information bubble.
“I was most worried that our city would be captured. It was the occupation that scared me the most. The first two weeks passed in a fairly calm atmosphere, but then the “shaheeds”, fighter jets, began to fly,” the girl recalls.
| The consequences of Russian attacks on Lozova. Photo: State Emergency Service of Ukraine, Dilo i Slovo
| Hitting a Russian martyr by a train at Lozovaya station on June 14, 2026. Photo: Public Kharkiv
When the mayor of Lozova called on residents to evacuate a month later, the family immediately decided to leave.
One ticket to the unknown and lives saved
They packed one small, complete life into suitcases: one suitcase for two with their mother and backpacks. They were evacuating in a large group — six people and two cats. There was no room on the crowded train, so the conductor let them sit right in the vestibule. The journey was long, with constant stops in the steppes. And the next day, the family learned blood-chilling news.
"The next day, there was an arrival at our station and the station in Kramatorsk. Fortunately, the missile did not explode in our city, but there were terrible consequences in Kramatorsk... It was very scary to read and understand that we could have ended up there."
| A Russian missile hits the train station in Lozova on August 5, 2025. Photo: DUMKA, SES of Ukraine
Finland: culture shock and return to Ukraine
Uncertainty led them first to Uzhhorod, and later to Finland. During their three months of living abroad, Veronika experienced all the difficulties of emigration: a different climate, a foreign culture, attempts to combine studies in local and Ukrainian schools, and a complete lack of dancing.
Life in Finland required significant financial resources, which the family did not have. So they decided to return to Ukraine, stopping in the town of Berehove in Transcarpathia, where Veronika’s trainer was based. However, even here they faced challenges.
“It was hard to adapt, not having money for rent or even for life. We changed about seven places, looking for something better in the villages. My mother worked very hard in factories. At that time, I didn’t even think about continuing my dancing path,” the girl shares.
Rebirth through pain: university and native Lozova
Over time, the situation stabilized. Veronika entered university, where she was able to combine her two passions - she began studying to be a journalist and at the same time developed as a choreographer. Being a student gave her the opportunity to visit home. Her first winter visit to Lozova gave her an incredible feeling of home. But over time, the joy of the visits was overshadowed by anxiety - the front line was approaching, and enemy missiles were already hitting both residential buildings and the girl's home school.
| A school destroyed by a Russian missile on September 13, 2022. Photo: UKRINFORM
“It’s very scary to realize, especially when the grandmother stays there. She will never leave, because this is her household, her home. I accept her decision, but for me personally, reading the news about the shelling is very difficult. But this is our reality.”
Adoption
Today, Veronika is actively working on her mental state in therapy. She has deeply reconsidered everything she has experienced and has come to an important conclusion: regretting the past will not help the future in any way.
Now the girl finds solace in helping others, sharing her creativity and stories about events in Ukraine.
“What happened to me is just my path, my trials that helped me become stronger. The only thing left is to accept everything that was and is. And continue to follow my own path, develop and give people what I can give,” Veronika concludes, demonstrating the true resilience of her generation.