Welcome to Season 2! Introducing OUR Journey : Intimate discussions with 3 dimensional people from Ukraine now in Ramstein Germany.
Audio from Snake Island, Black Sea: Russians: This is a Russian warship. I propose you lay down arms and surrender to avoid bloodshed & unnecessary victims. Otherwise, you’ll be bombed. Ukrainians: Russian warship, go fuck yourself. They were all killed.
Eric was on the beach in Odessa and heard this happen. Let's hear about it from his firsthand account.
It's week 4 of the war in Ukraine - let's meet Eric and Anastasia and hear their stories.
The Soul of the War
Eric: [00:00:00] All right.
Morgan: Awesome. Okay. Welcome. Can everyone introduce themselves?
Eric: Okay, I'm going first. It's my name is Eric. I'm a refugee from Ukraine. I can tell you Germany about two weeks ago.
Morgan: Wonderful.
anastasia: Um, awesome. Uh, I'm Anastasia Thomas. Uh, I'm Ukrainian. Um, I live in Austin, Texas right now, uh, gave to Germany to help, [00:00:30] um, about.
Three weeks ago.
Morgan: Yeah. And I have to, I think we need to start with the story about what happened between you two at my house last Sunday.
Eric: Yeah. I started that. We entered the house and so many new faces of course, but there are some faces in our legacy that you guess that you have seen this face [00:01:00] somewhere, but you're not sure because you don't know who is you pregnant with American and who is German even that's what's happened right now, all the time in the streets for me also.
So, um, I saw her face and I thought, oh, I it's it's it looks very familiar, but I was not sure. So I, I was going to ask in English because who knows, maybe she's an American. So I asked her about that. Um, Where are you from? And she said from [00:01:30] Ukraine, I said, okay, good sign. It's continual. And uh, I said, your firm's, uh, it looks familiar.
And, um, really something like that. Do we know each other or sometimes a year I go, and then I understood that perhaps, no, this is not, this is the wrong person. So I said, okay, let's try it again. And I said, did you study in a GIF national linguistic university? We have, we use the short approbation [00:02:00] for that CA and in, uh, Russian or Ukrainian.
And she said, yes. And then I remembered that. Yes, yes. That's exactly her that's also, I said, uh, did you study Chinese? So, and when I got the final, confirm it, after all these questions, she also remembered me. Yeah.
anastasia: And I mean, I've met probably over a hundred people, [00:02:30] like in my time here, Germany. So I never know if this is somebody I know from long time ago or is it somebody I met on my first day here? Um, cause yeah, uh, lots of new faces for sure. Um, but yeah, it was crazy. It was like, what? Eight years ago? 10 years ago.
It was long time ago and yeah, we, we shared the building with international students, like my faculty. So it would just hang out like on coffee breaks, eating everything. [00:03:00] So it would like meet a lot of them. And this is insane. Like what are the chances?
Morgan: I don't know what the chances are. I would like a mathematician to, to figure that out because.
We're in a pretty small town in Germany, and there's sort of a large American population here due to some of the military bases and, you know, war breaks out three weeks, four weeks ago. And all of a sudden there are, I don't know, 80 people at my [00:03:30] house with one hour notice because we just wanted to have some pizza and get people together.
People who are here hosting refugees, and then people, families that are fleeing the war. And it was most beautiful Sunday afternoon. And you know, again, like you I'm like meeting all these people, is it Russian? Is it Ukrainian? Is it German? Is it English? But you're like, we went to college university together in Ukraine, but Anastasia's here from [00:04:00] Texas for a month just volunteering.
And then Eric's there with his family. And I don't know, as a, such an incredible story.
Eric: Yeah, but it's not the first time I should have, because we went to get in there, stood guard, station transition, and we understood that actually she used to live in the house near our house in Kia. Yeah. That's because we are in the seven, a house in the street and she used to live in seven.[00:04:30]
Yeah,
Morgan: that's crazy. Maybe we should share a little bit about the background. So you're both linguists, is that
Eric: right? Yeah. I study Russian and German language is actually in Kia before years. Just one year in college, three years in universities and for an associate. And so I taught, she has studied Chinese and English from a mistake.
anastasia: Yes, correct. Well, technically, yes. My education is [00:05:00] in linguistics and I did well, technically it was five years because I lived in China for a year in between. My university years. Um, but yes, I have a bachelor degree in Chinese and Mandarin.
Morgan: That's super interesting. So maybe you could share, uh, Eric first kinda like where are you from and sort of, what's been your journey, uh, I guess here to Ramstein Germany.
Eric: Yeah. Uh, originally I'm from Iran. I was born in Iran and [00:05:30] then in 2009, I came to Ukraine for studying. And in 2013, I finished the study. I came back home, but, um, during that years I met my future wife. So, uh, in 2016 I came back and I get married. And, uh, 2017, my son was burned. So we came back to rent for two years and then we decided to come to come back to Ukraine because it was time for the kindergarten, for the boy.
And we decided to start leaving. [00:06:00] And we started to live in Ukraine after December, 2019, and then people living in here all this times. But before one month before the war actually, uh, I had a job opportunity in idea. So this is a Southern port of Ukraine right now after the annexation of green is the most important port of Ukraine.
And we talked that school [00:06:30] wonderful idea to move to an idea. So because, um, in spring and in summer you can be near the sea. This is a resort city and, uh, there are okay.
Morgan: We got to stop,
stop the recording for a minute. Cause I'm losing my internet.[00:07:00]
anastasia: Yeah. I mean, it's just that it would be like a,
Eric: I have to send problems. Sometimes it will say you device we're talking, but I lost you for a second. So
anastasia: pumped should completely. So yeah. [00:07:30] Uh, so they, her internet crashed. You think she'll try to reconnect in a second. Wait, one
Eric: minute. Okay. So, uh, and that's in German right now? Or did you come from yeah, no, I'm still in
anastasia: Germany.
Uh, your internet Kirsty.
Eric: Um, can you hear me now? [00:08:00] Yeah. Yeah. I lost my connection again. So,
anastasia: um, well I've been the village Gord cold Martin's ho um, and, uh, I'm like done in from lunch though.
Eric: Oh, okay. Okay. If you didn't collate K L as they call it. So not. So, uh, uh, I just want to ask it that's right now. It's not recording. Uh, what [00:08:30] about the other students who are studying Chinese?
Do, are
anastasia: you in, but I do remember. Yeah. I, I don't. I mean, yes, my friends, uh, yes. I have a lot of friends still from, um, You know, from university, but, uh, do you remember there was a, you may have not remembered, but he was always like smoking now. Um, a teacher, Chinese teacher, and he was kind of younger. I would always like smoked by the [00:09:00] building.
And what was his name?
Eric: Denise.
anastasia: A lot of it. I'm sure you've seen him because we would always hang out with him on breaks.
He was living in and we can find him.
Eric: Oh, my God
anastasia: was him on the
Eric: 12th. I have one, one, uh, uh, classmates from Kiev and her grandmother is in butcher right now. I yesterday [00:09:30] her name is actually actually, I asked her, do you have any connection with the grandma? She said no connection at all. She doesn't have any electricity, any fuel I'm short, any food right now.
So yeah, which unfortunately is not. Yeah.
anastasia: And my hope is that just, you know, that he just scanned, he does just doesn't have. Um, connection, but hopefully he's okay. He just can like, let everybody know, you know, that's my hope. [00:10:00]
Eric: Yeah. We have the same situation. My in-laws are from under occupation right now.
So sometimes they have connections. Sometimes they don't, whenever something happens, they just knocked down the connection. So people cannot just everybody what's happening
anastasia: here. Yeah. This is horrible. I know the Dean of faculty of Oriental studies. Um, his house got destroyed. I think it was like in European.
Maybe he, his house [00:10:30] is completely destroyed, but he's okay. And his family was okay, but no
Eric: house yesterday. Uh, I have a friend, her name is Anya and she studied in. My God, instead of Chanco university and she and her husband actually worked in China for six years, five or six years, they, yes, they used to work there.
They got the money and so on, so they could buy a small [00:11:00] flat outside the gear and it tiers. I'm not sure about the place, but it's, it's uh, this, uh, when, when you want to leave that's on this, uh, this, yes. I don't remember the name of the region, but this is 10 minutes. 10 minutes is it was a very beautiful flat.
We visited two years ago. My wife. Yesterday. I called her. I said, she's not answering. She just rejecting [00:11:30] answered what happened. She said our flat destroyed that's was, you know, that was the result of fires, working, getting money, working on that also because they were, they were building the second floor also.
And the father of, uh, the mother to the husband also was, uh, working there. So, you know, it's, it's, I don't know how [00:12:00] to describe it, you know, in one chapter of your life is destroyed in one second. I don't know how to say it.
anastasia: Yeah, this is it's it's it's it's an unimaginable unimaginable. There's
yeah. There's going to be a long way to recovery and it's going to take. A lot of effort and
Eric: sorry, that's, that's something that happened. You know, my wife has a flat in of the [00:12:30] place where you choose to live. Oh, okay. It's coming.
Morgan: Hey, sorry for that. I apologize for warranty. That's going to happen, but I think we're good to go.
And it was still recording. So where we left off with, um, as far as what I think zoom recorded was when you were talking about, it was a good idea to move to a desktop.[00:13:00]
Eric: Yes. Okay. Yes. Um, they offered me a job official job in a clinic, uh, because that was a reproductive community clinic that, uh, uh, started to go to European market and international markets. So they wanted somebody who could be a translator, interpreter, English, Russian, and, uh, I accepted it and did the head of the clinic actually was one of my students because I used to teach English and, um, [00:13:30] we moved to a desktop with high hopes and we rented a flat.
The bigger one, then what we had in Kiev. And we started to bring our things one by one, and we started to buy new things and start to furnish the house. And we were very, very satisfied and we really liked the neighborhood and everything about that. And we had this, all this hopes and dreams [00:14:00] that, uh, we could bring the, um, the grandfather of my son.
That means my father-in-law also for one or two months from many topple there. So you can leave it us also, you can also enjoy this beautiful city Nastia knows about this. I'm sure. Maybe she visited there several times and that was just a heaven, you know, that was just a heavenly idea for us to leave there.
And, um, some [00:14:30] so,
Morgan: and when, when was that, that you started moving into that.
Eric: 21st of January, 21st of January, 21st of January. Yes. So somehow it was one month and three days before that's horrible things. Yes. And the moment that it starts, it was already as one month that I was working there and, uh,
anastasia: [00:15:00] yeah,
Morgan: painted paint a picture of what it was like during that one month where there signs that the war was going to start,
Eric: you know, uh, we heard all, they, uh, about this, uh, w we watched the news and so on.
We bought these maneuvers and so on war games around in Byelorussia and so on. And. Speeches from Russian government specialty by putting, but nobody I can tell you, nobody was expecting that all of us, you know, even I have an a in Russian [00:15:30] studies. So I started putting, and I always think, okay, he's more smarter than that.
He's not going to do that because that doesn't give him anything actually. Right. And, uh, okay. He's threatening. He will get some of the parts that he wants and then he comes back because that's a very, actually a smart move. If you do that, if you can, if you can gain your things you want, but just maneuvering the troops, you don't need to wait.
You don't need to change your country [00:16:00] forever and change another country for, so I can just tell you, 23rd of February, it was a normal day when I was coming back from the fork. I remember it was. In the afternoon, just people coming back from the work, the students coming back from schools. No, but he was rushing outside the city.
Nobody was rushing to the, uh, gas stations to fill up. Nobody was rushing to the supermarket. It was a completely [00:16:30] normal day. The, that nobody was expecting a war full scale war the next day.
We
anastasia: Eric. Yeah.
Morgan: I've got you though. At least it's not my end.
anastasia: Yeah. I know it was like your crash and then his crash too. This
Morgan: is so typical of Germany. Okay, Eric, we, we cut out a [00:17:00] little bit there. Um, the last, the last thing we heard you say was. It was a completely normal day, the day before. And no one. Yes,
Eric: yes.
We got to bed the next day, 5 55 in the morning. I thought I heard something and I thought, okay, that's an accident probably in the street. And then I tried to, uh, get back to slipping and so on. And then I woke [00:17:30] up after half an hour or something, or my wife was standing and she was just shocked. I remember her face was he didn't move.
I don't remember if she was crying a song. He said, do you know that there is a war right now? I said, what? And she said, I just got called from a little from my sister. They're heating them. And they hit here also. I still couldn't believe that. So I got the. [00:18:00] My telephone and, uh, started to, uh, to browse the news and say, yes, fine.
55. Actually, they hit every major airports and Alyssa was one of them. So, but still, so, okay. This is probably, it will end today. You know, what's crazy that every one of us was just expecting that this is soon that's one that won't happen. And if that happened, that means that is one day for two days, three days maximum, that, that couldn't [00:18:30] be a full scale war.
Come on. This is 21st century.
Morgan: Yeah. It's also it's Russia. It's men Ukraine like the numbers. Yes.
Eric: Yes. But that's, that's, that's just crazy. Of course they will do something and Donbass again. Right. But why, I guess the, why other cities and so on. So. I didn't know what to do. You know, I was paralyzed my first paralyzed, the first thing that I remember, if we could decide that no TV, [00:19:00] first of all, TV is already for is, will be cartoon for the board.
So let's see, not understand this tension right now behind. And I thought, okay, well, what I should do, because it was a day that I worked at home and uh, I said, okay, I have a class at nine o'clock, so I'm going to shop. And I went to the supermarket and see, yeah, huge amount of people [00:19:30] were trying to book back to our old calm and they didn't show any emotions that were, but the number was huge, but I tried to get the things that I could, and I went back home.
I told my wife, I said, okay, I'm going to do that again because who knows what will happen? Maybe we need more food. Maybe there will be no shops tomorrow, maybe today. So I came back again to the shop and got what I still like [00:20:00] could came back home with groceries and so on. And then I checked that. I said that my lessons was canceled, canceled.
So, you know,
Morgan: what, what kind of message do you get from work? When there's a
Eric: war? Uh, from my work in the clinic, there was a message. But, uh, from the school that I was working online, they said that because of the situation, we are going to cancel [00:20:30] all the lessons for at least three days to see what happened three days, it's still big old.
All the people think that this is only treated. So then funny thing happened because after one, one that we came to this, we didn't have any. Opportunity to go to the beach together because I was working every day. I was working three days in clinic and four days in the school and I said, okay, I'm unemployed right now.
Let's go have a stroll, [00:21:00] a long walk on the beach. Let's go to the beach. Let's see. What does this city look like? Actually. So, uh,
Morgan: we need some tax people. Hey, Eric, Eric, you cut out there for a second. And the last thing we heard you say was [00:21:30] what you want to go to the beach to see what the city looks like.
Eric: Continued, should I continue? Okay. So we went to the market, we heard the huge explosion also at 10 o'clock, 11, o'clock sorry. You know, unplug.
I remember it was 11 o'clock, but we said, okay, let's go to the beach. It doesn't matter. We went to the beach, it was a very beautiful day. Don't believe it was sunny. One of them now, as I understood one of the things that we all have that [00:22:00] hope that this will end soon, that was that the first days of the war, that was a beautiful winter.
We had a beautiful weather and we went to the beach and my son was just crazy when, when he sees that the sea and the sense it can control himself, so started to play, but I sort of play, and my wife just was in the internet all the time. She tries to just talk with the parents, but there was no communication.[00:22:30]
Because their city was the first one, actually it was under the fine. And the first one was occupied Crimea. Yeah. There was no military. Mario Paul is a, is a port in Dennis. Yeah. And, uh, and military is not important, but it's a strategic one. Uh, due to this, all the crosswords comes to debt. If you want to get from Ukraine to the Crimea, you pass Manitoba anyway, [00:23:00] and vice versa.
So we were in the beach for two hours and then we started to hear also big explosions and it was coming from the sea. So we understood this is not safe to stay here, trying to come back to the. And try to come back to house. We decided to come back to the house. And then when we got to the house, when we read the news, we understood that was actually role each chapter of the first day of the war that all [00:23:30] people know about, that it's about the Russian ship who came to one of the islands outside and asked for the defendants to surrender.
And they got there that famous answer that became the, actually the slogan after this war so that we can say we heard it's crazy, but we didn't, we didn't know what happened. So that was the first day of,[00:24:00]
yeah. That's
Morgan: what was the famous
anastasia: phrase? Um, so you might want to cut it out, but it would go fuck you.
Morgan: I remember this. I remember this. Yeah.
anastasia: It was like the, the, um, came to that islands V and they, and they were like, this is Russian worship. Please surrender. If you want to live both surrender. And they were like, Russian worship, [00:24:30] go fuck yourself.
It was really, it was very uplifting.
Eric: Yeah. The last day when we were living, it was all over the place, all over the big, uh, black ones and big boards all over the place. I shouldn't shape that to them.
If you come here, this is your answer, Russians. If you come here, this is our answer. And so that's, that's just the slogan of this war. And actually, this is not just a slogan, the system, the [00:25:00] soul of this war,
Morgan: uh, paint a picture. What does that mean? I think especially if you're from Western Europe or America, like this is not something that processes.
You know, a full-scale invasion and more like, it just doesn't click or connect. Okay.
anastasia: It doesn't, it like that. Like for me, uh, my dark family is in Ukraine. Right. And I been, obviously that [00:25:30] tension has been heating before the war. And a lot of my friends in the states were like, Hey, are you okay? Is your family okay?
What do you think is going to happen? Everybody wanted to know my take because of Ukrainian. And they wanted by analysts and analysis of the situation. Right. They were like, do you think they're going to innovate? What do you think is gonna happen? It's like, I don't know. Everybody's fine. So far there's nothing happening.
Right? So like, yes, my family is okay if that's your question, but, um, I don't know. And [00:26:00] I just, like Eric said, I know. Nobody believed, like there were people who were like, okay, we don't think it's going to happen, but they're going to prepare emergency backpacks. We going to have our paperwork or passwords ready just in case something does happen if we have to flee.
Right. Because there were rumors. People were like, what if so people were like, for instance, my mom, she was prepared. She was, you know, she had an emergency bag. She [00:26:30] was like, I hope it doesn't happen. But if it does, I don't want to be rushing to gather my stuff. Right. Um, I, and I most certainly did not believe anything like this would happen just like Eric said, three days, max.
I thought they would try to just go on land and they would start with like donuts getting behind scarious and they would just try to kind of advance. And I was like, oh yeah, we're going to look, stop them at some point. And even if they take a little bit are going to be [00:27:00] able to push them back event. I did not see Airaid scrum.
I was, my husband was making dinner at home and I was like, oh, let me watch the news. And I accidentally turned the news five minutes after the first explosion. And after that, probably for about five days, it was just one big lore. I like barely remember anything. I had to call my family and tell them the divorce started.
I had to wake them up. Like it was the most soul crushing day of my life. Yeah.
Morgan: Tell us about your [00:27:30] family and Ukraine. Yeah.
anastasia: Um, so my mom she's in Kiev and she still is in Kiev and my step dad, um, he pretty much had walked him up on that day and he immediately went and took the weapons and started like he joined because he is, um, ex military.
He was participating in the operation in 20 14, 20 15. And so he he's in the reserve. So he knew that even if [00:28:00] he. It doesn't go immediately. He would be cold with the next few days. And he did what, like, he was always ready. He knew if this happened, that's what he does. So they ha he had the backpack. He was like full already.
He literally was there at the signup point for the defense within like two hours. There was no hesitation. Right. Uh, and my mom stayed and, uh, you know, she helped him pack and she still is there. And she does not want to waive she's volunteering. She's helping the doctors, she's [00:28:30] coordinator will in tears and she doesn't want to, like, she doesn't feel right to her to just go and bail when her husband is just miles away defending this country.
Morgan: Is he like on patrol or
anastasia: no, he's like, I, from what I understand, uh, he, he just empowered of like battalion and they're they've, they, they deployed them to a certain area around give what's his day job. Uh, he's a journalist. [00:29:00] Oh, he was a news channel. Um, producer I think is what he was doing. And then, um, yeah, he just immediately left and I mean, there wasn't like, I think for what it heard their channel shut down within the first few days anyway.
Um, and it didn't matter. Right. But it's priorities. It's like you to go do your job or do the good defend your country. Right? Like everything, like, I feel like everybody's life just changed, right? [00:29:30] Like nothing matters anymore. There's only one goal is to end this. And like you, you just so many things that come in the relevant.
Yeah.
Morgan: Yeah. The, the one thing that I've noticed is just the tiniest little flicker of a bright spot is that it seems like the west is United now, unlike, ever before.
anastasia: I think, uh, you know, the [00:30:00] calculation was that the vest will just try to contain it in Ukraine, which was always my kind of, that's how I imagined it would happen if it ever was to happen is that the west is just going to try to contain it and make Ukraine disposable as long as it doesn't spill over.
And that's what I think when he thought he thought he could just kind of calm and quickly do it, just like he did with Crimea. Like he did, don't ask him last. He doesn't expect the pushback. He gods from the [00:30:30] word world. And I never expected to have this level of unity and this level of respect to my country.
And I have never be more proud to be like, it just, I am so inspired by how my people are fighting and how everybody is so United. And so.
Morgan: Absolutely. Do you have any more family left in Ukraine right now or?
anastasia: Oh yeah. Like [00:31:00] literally every single person. I mean, I, I I'm sure I have some family who like, you know, laughter but yes, my mom, my stepdad, my brother, my aunt, my both of my grandmothers.
Um, everybody likely. So I'm from Ternopil, which is Western party grade. And it's right now, I think it's one of the safest cities in Ukraine. They only had like one chalet of the airport that's like pretty far inside the city. And I don't think they've had many more other than [00:31:30] that. So even leave, just got Childs yesterday.
Right? So luckily majority of my friends and family are international or it's very, very safe right now.
Morgan: Are they typically, are they having a lot of people from.
anastasia: Yeah, something like one in four, one in four Ukrainians got displaced. So that's around 10 million people around 10 million [00:32:00] people that had to find a new home. And especially considering men can not leave the country. If they decide to relocate to a different area, they all have to settle and investor in Ukraine pretty much by the border somewhere in, you know, just get as far from the war as possible.
And, um, it, it, yeah, it, everything is very packed and a lot, the women don't want to leave the country. Like they don't want to just flee to like another country and wait for their husband. A lot of [00:32:30] them decide to stay. They decide to stay somewhere in Western Ukraine and be together.
Morgan: Yeah. So speaking of that, that sort of Exodus of 10 million people, I heard a statistic that half of the children.
I have left Ukraine. I don't know if that's and that's kind of where we started kind of getting interested in it as my sister-in-law is Ukrainian and [00:33:00] she's got family back there. I mean, I even saw a BBC report of her town, like a little farm town where everybody got their, you know, hunting rifles out and repelled like a Russian tanks.
And it just, it just, it kinda blew my mind. But, um, like I'd started to understand because you know, her, her cousins, like, no, I'm not leaving. I'm not leaving, not going to do it. I'll stay at my husband. We'll stay in fight to the last debt, you know, like exactly whatever, and like that attitude. [00:33:30] But after some time, and they were down in one of these strategic locations, which is taking the heavy brunt, eventually she finally agreed to come because of their ten-year-old boy.
Right. You know, so that's just the thing. We keep seeing so many families coming and, um, you know, this organization here in Germany, uh, you know, is really focused on trying to help families reach a safe place. Right. And it's, it's so vastly different if you're in [00:34:00] Harkey or if you're in Leviev, it's, it's very difficult really to kind of grasp how it is or whatnot.
But, um, I really, Eric, I would love to hear kind of what it was like with your wife and your son, maybe describe like peanut picture of, of the journey from Odessa to Ramstein.
Eric: Oh, that's a long story, but very long story. But, uh, first [00:34:30] of all, exactly that we didn't want to leave when it started. We didn't even think.
anastasia: Are
Morgan: you ever lost him? We lost him again, again,
Eric: we can leave or all of our lives. This is what they started to. It's just not something to just say, okay, let's live it. And then go and come back or something like this. No, [00:35:00] it's not something you can decide very easily. Yeah. And actually my
wife's passport when Kia, because we didn't plan to go anywhere. You know, it was just, we just bringing a lot of things one by one. So when the war started in, uh, Thursday and my wife had the ticket to back to Kia for Friday, she bolted [00:35:30] three days ago. Yeah. It was just part of the life. It was not something to say, okay, I'm going to invite you on that day.
So be prepared, get your passports. I don't know, get your food and so on. So, uh, said what can we do to stay? And it will end soon. It will end soon. And, uh, okay. If perhaps it will have, we will have a seizure and so on, we will have shortage and food, so let's start to get food. And then [00:36:00] let's ration, for example, the food.
So let's have the meat and so on and we can have, I don't know, watch the pulse or potato that's okay for us. And then, and also, sorry. And. Try to convince them, uh, let put you in a train station, uh, and put you in a train, the train station, put you on a train and you can leave for a, the, or somewhere. And she said, no, you're not going to [00:36:30] separate it because this is war.
Who knows we can, when we can meet again, if we can meet again. So, so, and, uh, you know, the technical, it was impossible for men to get to the public transport, to get out of the city. They just, uh, uh, there was just place for women and children, so said, okay, will stay. And then, uh, one day it was one week after the war, I woke up as, [00:37:00] as usual as the, our routine starts to read news firsthand.
And we heard that there was the fire in the atomic, a station that was the first time in the time in. Seven days. I started being afraid completely because I, we prepared ourselves for everything shortage of food or water. I don't know. Uh, cut, uh, cut [00:37:30] off the electricity and so on and Hershey and so on.
But this one was something that I couldn't imagine. I said, okay, well, what do you do? What, what would you do if, if there will be atomically cage and you see that your son suffers, this is, this is unthinkable. In that moment, we just got our breakfast and river again, locked robots. We were just paralyzed.
We didn't not do. And somebody called my wife. And, uh, [00:38:00] that was from the organization who helped people to get out of the guess. She said, if you want to be your husband, this is your last chance. 40 minute. After this conversation, there will be a possible is living. And there is one place for your husband.
Wow. And she comes, she came to me, she was crying and she said, we should pack up lot pack. Yes. Back on fast. So we had five minutes [00:38:30] to panic. I don't know what we got in that five minutes. Hopefully I got my notebook. Let's say so because it was packed in that moment. I was not working with them. And, uh, just imagine what is happening, what does it mean to pack up in five minutes?
Part of your teams are
anastasia: still
Eric: part of your things in Kiev, not reachable, [00:39:00] but of the things are here. Things are in military,
Derek.
Morgan: Yeah, his Internet's worse than mine.
anastasia: Hey, Eric, you most do Eric. We
Morgan: lost you, right? Part of your things are in Manitoba.
Eric: Ah, yes. Yes. So we got, so we got what we could [00:39:30] in that five minutes and it should be just wanted case and one packet because you don't have enough space. We don't have enough hands to carry on. And also you have a four year old child that you have to take his hands all the time.
So we got what we could before, but many things as you imagined, and we got to the center of the city actually be, so that, that boss was leaving. That's supposed to take us well, we don't on that boss. [00:40:00] We got all, we saw another bus, hopefully, hopefully that was not the last boss.
Morgan: Did your heart drop when you saw the bus leaving?
Eric: I don't know, even my heart was pounding all the day or not, because it was just, you know, I was talking to my wife yesterday, you know, sometimes you leave and then sometimes look like somebody got the remote and try to fast forward you. But this was the part that somebody was fast-forwarding online. And we were just, I don't know, even my heart, my heart was [00:40:30] pounding or something.
So we got to the bus and we understood this part is not going to live without us. So we got cold cooled down a little bit. We said, but we were worried. And then we started thinking, oh my God, we left that. Oh my God, we left this. But still say, okay. Some something in my background of my mind, it was okay.
You, you, you leave for three, four days and you come back. It's not a big deal. Yeah. So a [00:41:00] bus left 20, 30 kilometers. And after that, we still huge line of. Uh, cars that was waiting to, uh, leave the country. It was Moldavia and port. So we got off the bus. We were on our own. We walked along 12 kilometers to get to the border with the things with my son and I.
Morgan: How long was the car? How long was the bus ride from the Dessa to [00:41:30] the Moldova and border?
Eric: Oh, I, it was. Half an hour of an hour he could get. And then when he arrived at the fair, the first card that was lying up queuing for the, for the, for the border. So the bus had to come back so we could not leave. We could not sustain the bus.
So we had to just so women and children and us and old people just got off the bus and we started to walk and take our things through the mud, through the [00:42:00] dirt, to everything that you can imagine. And was it still
Morgan: sunny? Like the initial day,
Eric: it was still sunny. That day was sunny, but actually drained the day before so that the road was covered in the modern.
I just, I just asking God, please, please let my son just hold his not crashed because if you crash, I cannot, I cannot take him. I have to put one of the things and take him once a complaint that I [00:42:30] cannot go forward. I say, oh God, please just help us. And then we could just convince him because imagine a four year old boy wants to work from 12 kilometers, 12 kilometers.
Yeah. That's insane. That was just, God helped us. And there were many people like us with two children, three children, actually.
anastasia: Yeah. That's seven and a half miles. Just everybody
Eric: listening.
And then we got to do it. [00:43:00] I don't know. How many hours we were on the road. So we got to the Mondo in and we saw this huge crowd of people that were all waiting to get passed. So we stayed in the line again. It was also, we stayed there for five hours or something like that. So when we pass them, the though in border, there are many episodes I'm just deleting because it's a long story.
So we passed the model in border and in the other side, they call it, they told us that when you pass the border, just call this [00:43:30] number. This is a sanatorium.
Morgan: We lost him again.
I think I'm going to create like a little script. So saying we lost him and then it'll find all those spots. Yeah. There
Eric: you go. Hey, Eric.
Morgan: Um, we were looking for the Sanitarium. Ah,
Eric: yes, yes. Okay. So we got the [00:44:00] border. It was.
Oh 10:00 PM. Yeah, it was 10:00 PM. Yes. And, uh, we tried to find out this, this, this number and, uh, try to find, uh, some, some, someone who could get us, uh, fortunately there were huge, uh, amount of volunteers to help people. They, they just, they, uh, they brought food to the border. They feed the refugees and then they take back [00:44:30] refugees with the cars also to Moldavia and other places inside.
So, um, we could find out some people were a bit, one family that was a woman with two little girls. Her final destination was Italy, actually. And then, uh, somebody said, okay, I will tell, uh, I will take you. It's okay. Volunteers, a nice man. [00:45:00] And then we went to transport. And if your listeners don't know where to ask for transport is a breakaway, the state also in Maldovia by Russian.
So when you enter the state or a Russian soldiers, actually on the border that checked on papers and so on, as they called themselves peace keepers or something like that,
Morgan: what was that scary thing? Russian soldiers,
Eric: you know, the moment that we left order, I [00:45:30] felt that, okay, this was something in my head.
My son will not suffer. So it was not scary. I can say what's not scary. So, and we were, sometimes you don't even can have any feelings because you're completely crashed, exhausted, completely exhausted. You just wanted to just lie down and sleep.
Morgan: Yeah. So you're able to create a mental wall so that your son wouldn't
Eric: see.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. [00:46:00] And then it was playing with this to a little girl that you had a good time. So, uh, I remember one of the border boss was talking to the drivers, said, okay, where are they coming from and sell yourself? How was it not, I once said bastard, you were just hitting that. We don't know what was in there, this okay.
Doesn't matter. So we got to this, uh, sanatorium. It was already one. [00:46:30] And it was completely museum of Soviet union. If somebody has, even if somebody is really misses, Soviet union should go to transport. This is exactly the city. It was not changed in, I think in 30, 30 years, then this is, this is something that was, that, that doesn't change.
Like if you want to see, so then you should go to this place. It's like a posse of, for example, to Roswell and so on. So it was exactly the same. So we went to the sanatorium. That was, I think, was having any [00:47:00] guest maybe in 40 years or something. I don't know. So the next day we understood that we can't stay here.
This is not safe. We are still under the Russians. So my wife tried to, and we saw a representative of the mayor of the city. And, uh, we, uh, started to call this, uh, volunteers, police, can somebody just come and take us out? They said, no, we cannot come. This is a [00:47:30] huge amount of paperwork or something. This is, this is not the justice city.
It is a Garrison, but the mayor of the city actually gave us one free. Right. They give us POS uh, we started to convince people, come on, you're not safe here. Let's go to the casino. This is the capital of city. And then we got to . We went straight to the train station there because we didn't [00:48:00] want to stay in Moldavia
anastasia: we lost Eric again. Yeah.
Morgan: Yeah. Everybody loves the journey.
Eric: Correct.
Morgan: Eric.
Okay, Eric you back. Yeah. Okay. Last thing we heard was that you got on you, you went to the
Eric: Capitol. Yeah. Yeah. We went to the bus station, [00:48:30] tickets and we, because we wanted to go to Bucharest and then we sat and we get to the Romania, but was also long ride in the night. We also. In the border of Romania.
And we had to say on the border, but hopeful about, uh, hopefully we didn't have to leave the bus. So we have stayed in the bus and we went directly to the port of the past winter. First, the boss went to the airport [00:49:00] because some people had tickets. They wanted to fly somewhere or buy tickets. And people like us, we didn't have passport Sunday to have passed, but we couldn't fly anywhere.
So we just went to the train station in Bucharest and there was packed with grainy and refugees like everywhere else. And they said there is no ticket, no ticket to Western Europe right now. But the first moment that we started to cut to Romania, we filled [00:49:30] difference. People were very kind and there were many volunteers and some of them said, if you don't have any place, just gather in this place.
And then we take you, then the, we, they helped us. They take our things. Then we sat in a transport. I don't remember it was a weapon or something. We went to the temporary camp. It was a school that was, uh, under repairment that moment. And we got there, [00:50:00] they gave us a bed and, uh, we had launched, but it was not a good place for, because so many people there and so on.
So they could find a place actually in a monastery.
Morgan: I lost Eric again, Eric,
Eric: Eric Hall.
Morgan: Yeah, we went to the monastery.
Eric: Yeah. We went to the monastery and believed in that monastery. It wasn't a [00:50:30] nice place with very nice people. And first time we could just rest a little bit, really arrest. So we prepared our documents because I have to translate, uh, my son's birth certificate.
It wasn't original Ukrainian. So in English, so it was needed. We didn't have any passport. So that was the only thing we could do. You stayed in Romania. I really liked this country. That was my first time. And they were [00:51:00] wonderful people. I love Romania. They were wonderful people. I can't imagine. You're not, Romania is not a rich country like Germany, but they shared everything they have with
Morgan: us.
I understand it. I wasn't going to mania. I was in Romania in the end of February and. No idea that any of this stuff was going to happen, but the people there are so generous,
Eric: they are, they really are. They, they did unbelievable. It [00:51:30] was unbelievable. People helped as much as they could. People were, uh, smiled.
When, for example, I learned some drumming and phrases that we are reframing refugees and small. They're trying to, although they didn't speak English or something, and some of the old generation is still knows editable Russian, but it doesn't matter. You know, there are some, sometimes you don't even have need language because you feel the soul and then be very in this [00:52:00] beautiful monastery for several days.
They said as much as you want to, you can just stay here, but we decided to go to Germany and
Morgan: then you decide to go to Germany.
Eric: Because first of all, I speak a little bit German and I knew that if I, if they come to Germany, there is a chance that we can. I can't find a job, even a low job, but I can't find a job.
And, uh, of course this is a better place if, because every day we know every day when it passed with[00:52:30]
anastasia: Derek,
Morgan: we lost. Yeah.
I think next time with Eric, we'll do it in person for better internet.
I think I'm going to title this, the soul of the war. Oh, I love that. Yeah. I like that too.
anastasia: Um, Eric, we've lost you for a second. So, um, we lost you at [00:53:00] the, that you speak German and you could find a job.
Eric: Yeah. Yeah. And everyday when, when, when, every day when we were, uh, Uh, after, when, after we left, we don't, our, our hope was shrinking that we could come back to Ukraine, the Robey, any life for us anymore.
So we just wanted to go further and I thought, okay, in Germany, I can find a job. Hopefully my son can go to kindergarten or we can find a decent place to stay for. I don't know, because this war is not [00:53:30] going to finish actually every day is just becoming uglier and uglier. They destroy more city. They just flatting down flatter oldest cities right now.
So we should face this reality. There will be no, no flat left for us. Actually, there will be no job for me. So,
Morgan: so you're you, how many languages do you speak?
Eric: Uh, no, I can save [00:54:00] more or less 5,
Morgan: 5, 5 languages. A four year old son. A master's in a Russian studies, Putin, Putin thesis, and now you are a, have a title of refugee.
Eric: Yeah. But I want to say something, uh, I think, uh, the other part of Germany will be perhaps in the next chapter, but this is my second war in my lifetime. Your second war, because I was born during the war, [00:54:30] Iran, Iraq war. And we were refugee again in that. And I was in the same age as my son, actually four years.
And when the war finished actually, where I stopped, went to school. So when you remember, I remember, yes, it was again, Russian planes because it all the Russian stocks and so on, it was Russia, the planes, Russian missiles. Yes.
Morgan: So [00:55:00] same, same thing. The next generation, the same
Eric: thing, the nature oration. Yes.
That's. I really didn't want that. My son had the same story, but hopefully he doesn't understand that why the left are you crying? But every time you ask for that, is this our house while you are not at home, when we can come back to home, where are my friends? Where are my grandparents? This is the horrible part.
Where are my grandparents? I want to see my grandpa, you know, he [00:55:30] used to, uh, his only train memories is when, uh, you have Iran, are you having me? Okay. Uh, he, his only train experience is the time that he used to go with her mother. Sometimes it need to the grandparents to military. Whenever we sit in the train, he started to say, okay, that means that I'm going to [00:56:00] see grandpa and grandma's.
So, yeah. And every time when we had just left a train, sorry, no grandpa, no grandma, perhaps the next time. Yeah.
anastasia: It's it's insane. Like my, my grandma, she was born, um, right after second world war and I just talked to her yesterday and she was just devastated. She was like a gambling. This is happening. I was born right after the war.
We barely survived. There was famine. We would, you know, [00:56:30] gather stuff on the field, like grass and weeds and make soups out of it just to survive. My mom was just pulled everybody through and I get like, I never thought this would happen again. I never thought they would live through those in my lifetime.
And it just soul crushing to hear the stories of older generation who has been through hell already, who has had very difficult childhood. The memories is still there. You can to raise that stuff and they, it old triggers back. And it, [00:57:00] I, I can't do it. Imagine how devastating that must be. And people who actually fought, fought the second world war, and now they have to be here again.
I just heard the news. There was a man who was a veteran of second world war, and he was a huge advocate for, uh, veterans and victims of that war. And he was in like two concentration camps and he was making sure that the world doesn't forget what happened. And he was killed in this war. [00:57:30] How is this even fair?
Morgan: It's not fair. So it seems like Eric, you wanted to . Yeah, it seems like you wanted to be able to pull your son out. And Germany seemed like a. A place of safety. Is that why you chose Germany?
Eric: Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly. I don't. I just [00:58:00] don't want him to experience what I experienced boxing, childhood and adulthood.
I just want him to be able to go to a normal school, have normal education, have his kindergarten and friends and play it. Shouldn't he shouldn't experience for this is not fair. War is not for women and children or what is not fair for everybody. But if that happens, this is not the place the children should be.
You know, I just heard today that from the first day of the [00:58:30] worst already, I don't know, 150 children is dieting crying and many more injured, many more injured. Yes. When you have 150 deaths, that means that at least you have three times more injuries and so on and injured. Right. So I just can imagine if that happens to my son, what could I do?
Morgan: It's impossible. Did you guys get on a train from Bucharest in Germany?
Eric: That's just, [00:59:00] that's just, that's a horrible part of our journey actually, because of the hungry and, uh, they, they try to, not to help actually try to somehow make it difficult for refugees. So in Bucharest, um, after four days we could have a free ticket to Vienna and then, uh, they told us that just, uh, stay in the train and don't leave the train.
So usually, [00:59:30] but, uh, on Hungarian border and Austrian border, two times the conductor will come and change your tickets. That's it.
Okay. Yeah, that's very beautiful. It's a very beautiful, uh, pictures country. So we were enjoying a rind. So we are hoping that, okay, it will not leave this. We just have a nap, something like that because we're just sitting place. We couldn't just lie down and [01:00:00] we'll get to Vienna. When we got to the hunger and boarder,
all the guys came in and took everybody else out that didn't have biometric passports. So we don't want to stay in hungry place. Just want to get to a piano. No. Should register yourself. We already entered the European union. What are you doing? No, this is the [01:00:30] Shingon area, right? Sorry. It's some bullshits that they'd like to say.
They took us out. It was two in the morning. I remember it was freezing cold. And there were all children, children, you know, that, uh, the CNO very well children don't have biometric passports in your brain either just in the case that they want to go abroad with their parents. So it's something that don't children don't have children have birth certificate all over the place.
They, they do all the things that they [01:01:00] need to do with your birth certificate. So there were again, children and there were people on the wheelchair. And I, so many children who are not the, say both handicap and it was just turned fine. They took us out in bounds and then they took us in a border city.
And then we waited there, there was a shelter. And they gave us some food, but that was just unnecessary, completely unnecessary because nobody wanted to actually set a [01:01:30] foot in Hungaria and they are starts to register us, uh, take the fingerprints and everything, and they take picture. Even I have a picture.
I have a paper from my old four year old son in a picture in Hungarian. It says, it said food in this country. And so on. When this old process finished for all of us, it was already seven in the morning. So seven or 80 yet we should do [01:02:00] actually the last or the tickets. There is no ticket anymore to Vienna.
You go to Budapest and then you'll find your weight from there. Oh, the mother of God, what are going to do in Budapest? I don't know this city. I don't know this country. Nobody speaks English at all. And we sat in a trend crashed.
Morgan: Yeah, lost him. Lost him.[01:02:30]
We lost you when you said you're on the train to
Eric: Budapest. Yes. And we were just facing this task that we are going to stay in the train station tonight. There is possible, there is the possibility for us to get a place. I was just praying my wife was completely out, you know, she was down completely and we, as we arrived to Budapest, [01:03:00] it was, I don't know, it was 12 midday or something around midday.
We just get ourselves inside the building of the rail station. And I was just looking around diverse Ukrainians all over the place. All of them was wanting to find somewhere how to go to the west somehow. And then I saw this guy who has holding a piece of paper in Ukrainian, says I take six people to Vienna.[01:03:30]
I didn't, I just w I was watching the paper all the time. I didn't even see who is holding that, you know, I got to him and I said in English, okay, what is that until you said, yes, we are. We can take six refugees to be Anna, if you like, I just looked around. No, of course it was my wife and my son, I said, okay, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.
These are us. So take us. Oh, wow. [01:04:00] I said, okay, just follow me. We went out. I didn't know. I thought, okay, maybe there are Hungarian or something likes to help. And then when we got to the, when I saw the Theresa Austrian flag, Australian and Ukrainian flag, and I couldn't believe I, then I remember all my Germans after 10 years said, guys, are you Austrian?
He said, yes, we are. I said, okay, can you just take us to the train station in Vienna? [01:04:30] And we just wanted to go to German and say, okay, calm down. You're going to do that. Anything you like? And these two wonderful people, Christoph and Stefan, there were two guys from lanes that they decided to just help people, help refugees.
They used to come to the border, take people out. They bring things and they help them out. They said, okay, we can take you Vienna, but let's [01:05:00] come to the links. This is our hometown. We can, uh, book a hotel for you. All of you for even several days, let's stay dura. Let's rest a little bit. But if you like to go to Vienna and then we talk with the people around those, these six people say, okay, let's go, let's go to the next let's let's, let's just sleep in the bed tonight.
Enough of the railway and, uh, train and Boston song. [01:05:30] So we went there and there was a very picturesque town links of the border with Germany. And this, these two people who were just angels, I don't know where they came from. I, I I'm I'm I'm sure there are big job came from heaven. It was just God put them in our way.
And then we got to this hotel, we checked in. They said, we're waiting for you. Let's go to this bit surreal. And we had a wonderful dinner with them [01:06:00] and we talked and understand who are they? What are they doing that? Um, so, and we just had a lovely time that night. I'll never forget in my life. And then they said, you can stay here.
If you like to stay in Australia with we'll help you to find a place and so on. But the moment that I got to Australia didn't I understood, I don't understand them because the German is very different from the German they learn. So I said, no, we want to go to Germany. [01:06:30] And it was pointed, but that was a wonderful place, really wonderful place.
So next day, uh, we checked out and we went to the train station and lanes and we got tickets to Munich. We were six.
Morgan: Yep. We lost him. It really does cut out a lot. [01:07:00] You lost me, Derek. We lost ya. We said you got a train station to Munich. Ah, yeah,
Eric: we got, we got a ticket to go to Munich. And then, uh, uh, when we were, uh, approaching to the German border, I heard announcement in German, Ukrainian in the train, that deal you bring in refugees right now, the police call will come and take your passport.
So don't go anywhere and so on. So [01:07:30] again, another border and, uh, they come out, they started to shake our eyes. They said, okay, show the passport. I said, this is not a situation. We have only ID cards. Oh, I have passport. I said, okay. The count of the train again. Hopefully it's not two in the morning. It's just 10.
Uh, and so again, the same story, women, children, [01:08:00] polite. They took us out in a bus. We went to another, uh, German border city and they started to register us again. So we got registered there and then they take, uh, take us, uh, take us back into train the session. We sat in another train, we got to Munich.
Uh, we got to the train [01:08:30] station. We sit, there are Ukrainians everywhere. And, uh, we still, there is a big tent or something for refraining refugee. We just got there and somebody just started to shut all of Ukrainian refugees. Follow me. This is German police and something like that. Um, so we followed them, they took us in a building, outside the train station.
They take a coronal [01:09:00] tests our second time, because we just had one at the border and then they send us to a camp. And then right at the camp they take, they took another Krono test. Third time in one day, the record. Yes. I explained to them, come on guys, look at this, look at this paper. We just had this one hour ago, but you know, Germans, sometimes they don't understand anything, but they just, they, they, they repeat the same [01:09:30] things.
No, you have to do all the rules. Yeah. So it was a biggest stadium that they prepared for the sheltering, the refugees. So we got to the stadium, there were bets inside. We had the meal and then we just crashed again on the bed. Next day, we understood the can stayed here. This, this was a horrible place.[01:10:00]
And then, uh,
so, okay. W what we can do, let's, let's go to Stuttgart. That's, that's more west, perhaps. That's a better place for us, because I knew that I should avoid big cities. And we went to the stood, got the same story again, again, camp, and then, uh, in the internet, we found, uh, this lovely family that posting us [01:10:30] right now.
Can you tell Brandon. We are ready to accept you, but we live in .
Morgan: Nobody knows where
Eric: Kaiserslautern is. And I thought this is the part of the street got somewhere around the street quarter, something like that.
Morgan: How did you find Kate and Brandon on the
Eric: internet? My wife found them. It was a site or something that, uh, was Facebook group.
I don't remember right now. They were the very people who offered [01:11:00] shelter to Ukrainians refugees. And then I called them. And from the first woman I understood are nice people and they said, come whenever you want, if you want, we can pick you up anywhere. So
Morgan: we lost him again.
anastasia: Yep.
Morgan: Yeah. I think we should wrap it up soon. Yeah. [01:11:30] Hey, I'm Eric. We last year when you said Kate and Brandon were really nice. When you're talking to him on the phone.
Eric: Oh, I understood that, uh, that they are very nice people, but, uh, first we didn't want to go there because we hope that somehow German government, they organize a place for us.
So we didn't have to be a burden for a family. And then, uh, we stayed in stood guard first day. They registered us again. I don't know how many times they registered us in Germany. [01:12:00] Yeah. It's just register after registration. And they said, okay, your final register will be in two days. Good God. Okay. We are going to stay in this camp for two days, two, three days.
And then they go, we just don't ask. And probably they found a place. This is a place for us to leave. And so, and then one day before that day, they came and said, sorry, there are too many peoples, probably it will be two weeks, two more weeks. [01:12:30] What, two more weeks living in this. Come on Jen. I talk with my wife.
I said, okay, let's, let's go as a guest to this family's house for three days. So we can sorry. Have a shower, at least normal shower, wash our clothes
and so on. Yeah. And, uh, we can rest a little bit because it's horrible to live in the camp. And [01:13:00] then, um, so we, uh, came to Kaiserslautern and then I understood this is a good place actually said, okay, that's forgettable. There stood guard. I know that's a big city, but perhaps this is a good place because first of all, as I understood, there are many Americans here, more closer to the Americans is more safety right now.
Second, this is a city. English has [01:13:30] this big thing there. So even if our German is not good enough, so at least we can find our way somehow or another. And then now you understood that that was the right decision to make. And we are living with tempo. We are waiting for a flat that they promised us to find a rating.
Let's see. And I'm looking for a job right now. And also we are looking for kindergarten and things like dance or [01:14:00] language course for my wife or myself integration course as they pull it and so on. So that's how we ended up in KL after Ukraine.
Morgan: Yeah. What day did you arrive in ?
Eric: Uh, it was one week ago. And on Saturday.
anastasia: So like literally when we met at
Eric: work. No, no, no, no. When we met on Saturday or
anastasia: Saturday or Sunday?
Eric: [01:14:30] Yeah. Sunday. Yeah. So, uh, sorry. Uh, North Korea gasser. We arrived on Friday. Yeah. Two days before, two
Morgan: days before that pick the pizza party,
Eric: the pizza. Wow. Yeah, that was the first party after. I don't know.
Morgan: That is completely wild. And the fact that you two are at the, at my house. Yeah, that is [01:15:00] crazy. Um, would you say that you and Katya feel safe?
Eric: No. Yeah. It feels safe,
but let's face it. The countries in the war. Our parents are under occupation. You know, worry about them either. I have many tribal the stories from this occupation parts, but this is not the part that I'm going to tell today. Perhaps the next time it will be a next [01:15:30] time. I hope because it's not just about us.
Yeah. We've got to the safety, the lost many team. We got to the safety patrol. Many people are not safe right now, but don't know what does it mean safety anymore?
Morgan: I got some, I got some, some pups here getting excited. [01:16:00] Yeah. He's a good boy. Eric, are you there?
Yeah, we'll be picking him up and delivering. Oh, can you hear. We lost you. Yeah, I was just saying that next time we should do, um, at my house with better internet. Just bring both laptops. That'll be cool. Um, but we lost, I think this would be a really good time to kind of sum [01:16:30] it up or say like a call to action.
Like something that you want to say.
Eric: Um, I was talking too much, so nasty, old stuff.
anastasia: Oh, well, if my call to action, um, I have been saying this to, uh, all my friends, everybody who's always checking in and asking, what can you do, right? Or I wish there was something I could [01:17:00] do. Cause it feels like if you are not in the danger zone and you're not in the immediate imminent danger or you don't know anybody who is.
You are far away and you just gonna sit and watch in the backseat and that's not true. And I want to reiterate that every single person, regardless of where you live, you can do something. It can be as simple as sharing the news, keeping it in the news and constantly talking about this [01:17:30] because if the world forgets, if it just cycles out of the news, it's not going to stop people from dying in Ukraine.
So just as simple as chairing, or if you know somebody who's your great hand or who is in Ukraine right now, just check in, just say something. In kind words go a long way. Um, if there's anything that you can do, like contact with local authorities there, it's about closing the sky or about supplying bathrooms or hosting refugees.[01:18:00]
Look it up. What do you can locally do in your place to contact and to sign a petition or to write a letter and do something and be visible. Join your local rallies show. The support shows show the world that the world is United and we are want front fighting this horrible dictator. If you can donate, of course, there's some ways you can donate and you can join the world effort in supporting the [01:18:30] refugees support, supply humanitarian aid, medical aid, armed forces.
If you, for whatever reason, don't feel comfortable, donating to armed forces, donate to the medical part of it, donate to support the refugees. If you know that locally, wherever you are. There is a local place where you could go and bring some clothes, bring some food, just talk to somebody you do that. Do that.
Every single little thing counts, even if it feels like, oh, I just brought a little bit of food. It's all going to [01:19:00] global agenda anything. Yes. It's not that you're going to make somebody's life better and you're going to make somebody's day better. And that, that matters. And that matters. Just don't think you, you, there's nothing you can do if you afar.
Absolutely.
Morgan: And this is, this is really like upsetting the world order. You know, it's
anastasia: not
Morgan: Putin trying to poke in and, and, uh, take back a disputed territory. This is all out, completely [01:19:30] changing the world order since world war two. Yeah. And if this is not successful, If it doesn't go the right way, what's next, our way of life, freedom democracy.
It's, it's not the same as a civil war. It's it's not. So it's incredibly important. And I understand people forget things and they go on to the next thing. But this is, this is different.
anastasia: This is different. And it's very close to [01:20:00] the European union. Me, are you great hands of guardian democracy in the world.
As we know it right now, people die every hour to do make sure that this doesn't spill over into the sort of world war. So whatever you can do to help that effort without actually physically joined that, do that cause gas prices. That's going to be the, to the. If we don't succeed at our effort at defending our country.
Absolutely.
Morgan: And Eric, I really want to thank you [01:20:30] for sharing your story. I know that it's, it's so intimate and it's one second. Please take him out. Thank you for coming in, in the middle of the podcast. Aaron. Sorry. I'll restart. Okay, Eric, I really wanna thank you for sharing your story. It could not be easy.
That's so much trauma and you know, it's really inspiring to see how you [01:21:00] were able to bring your family to safety and try to protect your son from. The horrors of war, which you experienced as a child,
Eric: it was a miracle. It was just a miracle from the court. It was not just me. I just saw angels all around in know there were only angels and demons on the road we were coming.
So angels helped us was not something we could do by ourselves. The moment that we needed, really helping you, wherever desperate, completed. There were [01:21:30] people who came on a way. They helped us out. They take us out.
Morgan: It's incredible that sometimes those people just appear when you need them. Yeah,
Eric: we don't, we still don't know what Kate and Brendan does doing different.
Just discussing that. Sometimes it might wife and joke about that. Perhaps
it's not natural. That person should be so good.
Morgan: Well, our good people are [01:22:00] good. They really are. But if you wanted the people who are listening to take some kind of action,
Eric: uh, very well, I just had to do that. The portraying are not bleeding for you. If you don't want to bleed anymore in the future, help them to stone this block. First second, if you want that Ukraine too, so wise help you praying in nations to survive because if the nations are wise, the country will survive.
I'm sure. So one of the [01:22:30] reasons that I took my son here, my family here, so because they are already premiums and they will be Ukrainians and they can build this country, rebuild this country again right now. That's why we came here. Just didn't came here just to around and left. What, what, what was behind it?
It's impossible. It's impossible. Just imagine the situation that you'll have to face you face the same situation. What will you do? So it's impossible. You can't forget that. You can just say, okay, [01:23:00] I'm going to start a new life. That's it? No, that doesn't, that that never happens. Never happens. So help your green nations right now.
anastasia: That's very well said.
Morgan: All right. Well, I really appreciate both of you for sharing your stories and I definitely hope we can do it again. Yeah,
Eric: yeah, definitely. Yeah. Thank you very much to be our voice tonight, today. Yes.
Morgan: All right, [01:23:30]
anastasia: bye
Eric: bye. Bye.