My lost paradise... Memories of life before the war

The place of my strength... Quiet happiness and pain lives in my soul.
A few days ago, a dear friend visited my village of Rokytne in Ukraine, which was my happiness, my favorite paradise. He took many photos of all the moments, which I keep as a precious treasure in my memory. I lived there for many years, I found happiness there. And suddenly there was an irreversible loss. My parents died... The place of happiness became a place of pain... But a big part of my soul lives there...
My mountain opposite the garden, so different in the four seasons of the year... I often wrote about my mountain once... I dreamed of building a house here when my parents were alive. But God knows our dreams better than we do. Because we don't know what will happen tomorrow. We include other people in our dreams. People go to another world... Our dreams are destroyed...
I loved this mountain so much in the fall when it was orange. But one day it became black and white in autumn...
My house is in another place. But time will pass, my pain will turn into a bright memory. Then I will come here again.

A small pond in the thickets of reeds, which gave me joy. It saved me in the summer heat. It was my sea. I am glad that the underground springs feed this pond and it continues to be.

My favorite forest. A small forest just 5 minutes walk from my house. Here I walked in search of amazing forest gnomes - mushrooms. This is where I did my physical education in the morning. And in the evening he watched the sunset. Thank God mushrooms grow and please those people who find them :)

My garden... Bright yellow juicy pears produced abundantly this year. There are viburnums on the bushes and my favorite walnuts on the tree under which we drank coffee every morning with my parents...

The neighbor's cows graze in the deserted garden. And the little calf comes to the yard and wants to enter the house :) Moments dear to my heart.

Our fertile Ukrainian land is bearing fruit... which my farmer parents loved so much. Corn, zucchini, tomatoes, cabbage... Everything looks so beautiful. But so hard is the work to grow it! I remember how my mother and I worked together. I wish I could experience it again with my mother for a moment...

And flowers, flowers... Gladiolus, marigolds... Ukrainian women love to grow flowers in their gardens.
It looks really beautiful. But I was always different. I did not like the sedentary life in the yard. My happiness was in the forest, where the wildflowers were all mine. And I am like a field flower that does not like bright clothes and makeup, but is original in its simplicity.

Everything passes... People are gone, but the fruits of their hands live on. The blackberry berry near my old country house is so beautiful and delicious. And the hazelnuts and wild red strawberries, which I planted myself... There is food for forest squirrels, which often come to our garden.

My parents died... The yard was empty... The sun went down behind the forest... A bright memory lives in my soul...

Thank you for the opportunity to share my memories 💕