LWe all remember the date: February 24th. That day the light goes out on the borders of Europe and the rumbles of war come on: Russia invades the Ukraine. A very young tiktoker, Valeria Shashenok, 21 years old, nickname Valerisssh, sees his life turned upside down, like that of millions of other kids his age. But he decides to fight back. And, not only does he start showing everything that happens on social media, but he also begins to write a diary where he recounts his experience from the outbreak of war to today.
Valeria Shashenok decides to show her hometown on social networks, Chernihiv, and describe moments of the war (on Instagram it is followed by 125,000 followers). These are scenes that none of us could or wanted to imagine. And the horror doesn’t even end with her flight to Milan, because, once there, Putin’s bombs reach her and hit her in the heart. This is Valeria’s story; a story of bombs, evacuations, life, death and things that only make sense in a bomb shelter.
His observations are now incorporated into the book February 24th and the sky was no longer blue published by Sperling & Kupfer. We interviewed her.
“The worst nightmare of my life”
“When Russia invaded my country, Ukraine, my parents, my dog and I fled to a bomb shelter. And because there was Wi-Fi there and the days were damn long and boring, I posted videos that were supposed to feature my new home, and some of these even went around the world. But my story is actually very different: is that of a girl full of big dreams who wanted to discover the world and thought war was a bad joke. Until the day I realized that I was in the middle of the worst nightmare of my life.”
The tiktoker Valeria Shashenok: «This is my reality»
Valeria how are your days today?
It depends on the alarm sirens and electricity. I returned to live in Ukraine and I can’t control my days. But if I forget the problems, I can still meet my friends, travel. I was in Kharkiv a few days ago and the situation is terrible.
You’ve always filmed everything since the beginning of the war.
I’ve always used the cell phone. I record what I see or ask people I know to do it for me.
Has journaling helped you deal with your emotions?
I honestly don’t know. But, anyway, I think it’s good to collect my thoughts and let others read them.
Was there a moment when you were more afraid than any other?
I’m used to it by now. What is happening in Ukraine unfortunately is my life. I try not to focus on the pain. I want to continue my life. I listen to music, I watch movies, I hang out with my friends.
Do you have any idea why it all started?
Putin imagines himself the king of the world and wants to subject it to Russia. Ukraine is an independent country, very young. When Zelensky started working as president, he started doing everything to get Ukraine into Europe. Putin would most likely have had a heart attack if Ukraine (the former country of the Soviet Union) had succeeded. The conflict with my lovely Ukraine started in 2014 when Putin took over Crimea and occupied Donetsk and Lugansk. But unfortunately, the former presidents of Ukraine failed to stem it: Viktor Yanukovych simply fled the country when it happened because he was pro Putin.
You are with your family now: why did you return to Ukraine right away?
Ukraine is our home.
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