THENEWYORKER,JANUARY31, 2022 69
POSTCARDFROMKYIV BYSERGIYMAIDUKOV
Today, I woke up and my first thoughts were about the inevitability of war. With reports of Russian
saboteurs and hackers infiltrating Ukraine, anxiety is running high among my family and friends.
Some of us have decided to join the Territorial Defense Forces—this helps calm me down, but not
much. We pass soldiers on the street and in the metro. Around the city, the government is checking
bomb shelters as a worker repaints a “Shelter” sign. In vain, I try to hide from the news.