They would have preferred to be back home in Odessa, but that is not possible. And they also have to miss their men who are at sea for weeks on end for work. Yet these three Ukrainian families make the best of it. The ten of them live together in a farm in Twisk and put all kinds of Christmas delicacies on the table.
“Celebrating Christmas at home is better,” says an emotional Yuliia, mother of Denis (13) and Vova (4). “But we just keep going, especially for Vova, who is small and he can’t remember how we celebrated Christmas at home. So we make the best of it here.”
Together with two other Ukrainian families, she arrived in Twisk from Odessa two years ago. “I drove for five days. And in March we will have lived here for two years.” The children go to school in Medemblik. “It’s going well, I’ve already made quite a few friends,” says 13-year-old Denis in fluent Dutch.
All under one roof
It is Klaas and Martha Groot who opened their farm. They live in the attached apartment. “This part became vacant, so we decided to help. We live under one roof, but still separately. That’s why things have been going well for a long time,” says Klaas, laughing.
They have had a family home in Twisk for almost thirty years, where they care for about thirteen foster children. It feels natural to them. Being there for others. “The future is uncertain, we hope they can return home soon, but until then they have a warm place here.”
Thoughts with family in Odessa
The families’ thoughts are mainly with their relatives, who are in Ukraine. Like an uncle and aunt. Yuliia: “They don’t want to leave Odessa. And they have also said: ‘if we die, it will be at home’.”
But the longer the situation lasts, the more bitter it becomes. Klaas: “We also notice that they are becoming a bit uprooted. They are trying to build a life here, but they also have a life in Ukraine. But when they go back, they don’t know what kind of life awaits them there. Even if the war is over. People do such terrible things to each other. The realization dawns that it will certainly take a generation for this to sink in.”
First Christmas on December 25
And so they make the best of it, even during the holidays. Even though everything is different. For the first time, they celebrate Christmas on December 25 instead of January 7, according to the Russian Orthodox faith. In Ukraine they wanted to get rid of ‘the Russian heritage’ and so the law changed last summer, reports NU.nl.
The table is fully set, among the apple pie are Ukrainian delicacies. The Christmas party can begin. Yuliia: “According to tradition, we always express a wish to each other and wish each other wealth.”
“I hope that peace will come very soon and they can return to their family. And they can build a life with a lot of forgiveness,” Klaas concludes.