Nastya, 13 years old, summer camp participant

»I've neither brothers nor sisters and live with my parents in Mariupol.
The political opinions of the people have changed as a result of the war and became more radical. Before the war, I was able to go everywhere with my friends, this has become more difficult now because our parents are afraid and military conflicts are taking place.
In the past there were shootings next to our house, but now it has calmed down. We still hear the shootings, but these take place far from our home. We also installed a shelter in the basement.
Now, we are afraid of walking around in the forest and we have a dacha at the lake, too, but my parents are scared to go there.
I also had first aid and safety lessons at school where I learned how to protect myself.
I would like to stay optimistic and my parents help me, because they are confident. My grandparents think the same way, they try not to address political issues and to lead a normal life.
We are afraid that we will lose our house and have to move away. Many displaced people are living in Mariupol already and I'm afraid the same might happen to us. I lack an inner balance and the confidence that everything will be right again. When I'm in the camp and don't reach my parents on the phone, I'm afraid that something bad has happened to them.
The best in the camp are the relationships among each other and the employees don't just do their job but really give it all.
My wish for whole world is that people understand each other better, because the reason for conflicts is mostly incomprehension between people and sometimes it degenerates into a war.«

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