Three stories about the war. Khrystyna Kudriava

In war, there is always a room for humour, for simple moments of joy shared with your sworn brothers, and for saving little furry lives.

Our sworn sister Khrystyna ‘Kudriava’, an officer of the National Guard of Ukraine, told us three stories about the war – about borshch, almost like mother’s, about a promise to a sworn brother, and about a cat wearing orders. 

A story about green borshch

The settlement of Zaitseve. We went with the personnel to work with SPG. We found a house there, in the house we found a dog, which was left on guard, and in the basement we found canned sorrel in jars. And I thought, “Damn, I really want that green borshch. The kind my mum makes”. And with that thought in mind, I worked and came back to the base. 

I have such a position that I don’t appear in the kitchen. I appear very rarely, at night, so that no one sees me cooking. I don’t want anyone to associate me with the kitchen, because when men start associating women with the kitchen, they don’t associate them with combat work. My guys were generally used to it. They knew I was not in the kitchen. However, we had two such big ‘bears’, K2 and Braha. They were about one metre eighty to ninety tall – two hulks. And so they were constantly busy in the kitchen. One was great at cooking meat when everyone else was out on assignments and he stayed. And the other one simply cooked soups and left them in a bowl for the commander when the latter didn’t have time to eat. 

So we came back from the mission, sat down in the kitchen to have a hurried meal, and I said, “Shit, there was sorrel there, we could have made borshch.” And Braha replied, “So why didn’t you take it, I would have cooked it.” And I was already waiting for the next mission to go to that house and pick up the sorrel. Then Braha cooked us an amazing green borshch. We all ate and enjoyed it. 

Unfortunately, in the battles for Independence and territorial integrity, my sworn brothers K2 and Braha were killed. They died on 8 November 2022.

Another story about a white chest of drawers from combat allowance

We were supposed to go on rotation at the beginning of 2022, but we spent 2021 at test sites, had a lot of training on combat in the city, and a lot of planning work. It was as much of a training story as possible. And a group was planned to go on reconnaissance. 

A very good friend of mine, a person who was one of the first to support me when I first joined the brigade, with whom we had a very good, warm, friendly relationship, came to my office and said, “Do you want combat allowance?” And I was like, “Yes, of course I do.” He was like, “Well, I recommended you, and you will buy me a white chest of drawers from your first combat allowance.” Then he collected all his savings and bought a flat. Every time he came, he boasted about what he had bought. He bought a big bed, a chandelier, and ordered a kitchen. It caused him a lot of emotions because it was his first big purchase. I promised him that I would buy him a chest of drawers from my first combat allowance. 

At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, we were holding the defence in the settlement of Rubizhne. Due to the lack of commanders, he was appointed commander of one of territorial defence units. And together with his unit, he was captured. On the third day, I received a message from his WhatsApp account. And I still can’t forgive myself for not buying him that chest of drawers. I’m really waiting for him to be exchanged. So-called DPR government sentenced him to 15 years in prison. And I keep waiting and doing everything to bring him back from captivity as soon as possible. To fight for every life. To fight for every defender, for every true Ukrainian.

About a cat from Bakhmut

When the fighting was going on at the Artemivsk Champagne Wines Factory, we came with the UAVs specialists to work there. And once we came under artillery fire. We waited in a shelter and then started to reel in the fishing rods. There were a lot of cats near the entrance where we were working. It was clear that they were both outdoor and indoor cats. And the commander said, “Let’s call, if someone comes, we’ll take it.” Because it was not really possible to catch them. And he said, “Kitty, kitty.” And then one the most cheerful cat jumps right into the car, sits down at feet and is like, “Well, let’s go.” 

From Bakhmut to Chasovyi Yar, the cat didn’t even meow – he sat and quietly worried about leaving. After Chasovyi Yar, he relaxed a bit and started meowing. We asked him if he wanted to come back. It was clear that he definitely did not. He lived with my unit, in the place where we were stationed. Guys called him Balon, because he farted and ate the dog food that the volunteers sent for the dogs. 

Now he valiantly lives in a village in Zhytomyr region. He has own window sill, on which you can’t put anything. And everyone in the village knows that he is a cat from Bakhmut. Such a heroic one, he almost has medals, and everyone loves him very much. 

Editor Marysia Mianovska