My Time in Ukraine

Like many Americans, I had been hoping Russia's build up of military forces along the Ukrainian border would turn out to be a bluff. I was heartbroken when they invaded. For me Ukraine is not some abstract place, I lived there for over two years.

I served in the Peace Corps from 2005-2007. I signed up for the Peace Corps not because I'm a selfless angel, but because I was frustrated with how my life had been going since I graduated college and wanted a complete change. When I found out my application had been accepted and that I would be going to Ukraine, I had to look it up on the map--I knew nothing about the place.

Back then Ukraine was in international news then too, they were in the Orange Revolution. The people refused to accept rigged election results and rallied to install Viktor Yushchenko, the true winner, into the presidency. At the time it seemed like a sea change. I remember a school teacher telling me that students usually passed bribes to teachers to get the test scores or admissions they wanted, but with this new administration they were reluctant to do so. It took me a moment to realize she was complaining about bribes not being passed.

Those were hopeful, exciting days to be in Ukraine. I worked as lecturer at several universities and the students were generally optimistic about their country's future. And the country was developing before my eyes. When I arrived I had to learn how to wash my clothes by hand. By the time I left locals mocked me for not owning a washing machine. When my city of Poltava got its first big supermarket there was a concert by future Eurovision contestant Ani Lorak.

Before I went the number one question I got about Peace Corps service was "Are you going to dig holes?" I'm not really sure what that was about. My official duty was to teach business and economics. However, Peace Corps service is more than that. Part of it is giving people around the world first hand accounts of America. In the wake of the rolling disaster that was the Trump administration, it is easy to forget just how bad the Bush administration was. The Iraq war was unpopular in America, but it had absolutely no support in the rest of the world. It was generally seen as a boldfaced attempt to steal oil. The Peace Corps helped put a human face on what would otherwise just be an aggressive empire.

In American media at the time Ukraine was often depicted as having a pro-Russian East and a pro-European West. On the ground it was more complicated. Young, urban people tended to be more forward looking, while older, rural folk were more likely to be nostalgic for the Soviet Union. However, back then optimistic communists could imagine Russia and Ukraine peacefully re-uniting. Years of Russian aggression have pushed Ukrainians further away. Few will be welcoming the invasion.

Yushchenko would ultimately prove to be an ineffectual reformer and the old guard would regain control of the country. Corrupt to the bone, they were ultimately tossed out again in 2014. Wary of having successful democracies on his border, Putin attacked. He successfully captured the Crimean peninsula, but his attempts to seize a chunk of Eastern Ukraine got bogged down in a stalemate until he sent in a full fledged invasion this week.

I had many friends at the time, but I've lost contact most of them now. It's been 15 years and I swore off Facebook a long time ago. One Ukrainian I've kept in touch with updated me on Monday about the situation:

Pretty much as usual. Those who were super scared left, others are living life and that's it. Probably the only visible effects: people spend less and practice with weapons more.

I hope they put their weapons to good use. I hope she's OK. I haven't heard from her since.

I, a millennial, am older than nation of Ukraine. It seems entirely possible I will outlive it.