First meeting with the "Kholodnyi Yar"
The “Kholodnyi Yar” has recompensed with hospitability, it feels the good intents… Each place has its own soul that inhabits forests, rivers, hills and meadows, and as well hearts of the local people. Respective to this the destiny of the territory is formed, the local history is composed and the tales emerge.
The “Kholdnyi Yar” has something to tell. It whispers into your ear about the turbulent time of the Cossacks victories, about the stormy events of the fight for the national idea. Its words are in branches of the everlasting trees, its secretive thoughts in dark ravines, its dreams in the starry sky, its grey hair is the historic monuments scattered around. And like apparitions in its head the ancient and legendary historic personages arise. You overlook, and there’s no one, only the birds chirping and shadows from trees playing around…
The “Kholodnyi Yar” can teach you. It will tell to you what the real devotedness to the native land is. As a red line the stories about the local insurgents and fighters for justice, for own homes come through the historic heritage of the “Yar”. These are its lessons. And if you listen with your heart so much more can be heard and I personally will never be the same as before the talk with the “Yar”, after I covered the multi-kilometer way into the very core to peep into the eyes of the oldest tree in Ukraine.
The “Kholodnyi Yar” has been talking with me through its envoys – local inhabitants, hitchhike drivers and through the events that happened while I was a guest there. The “Kholodnyi Yar” told to me that everything’s gone be good, it awaited for us and awaits for many more people to ever sooth the restless thoughts and impart with the love to the Motherland.
He stood on the top of the “Zhiguli” car and pointed into the horizon looking for a gilded roof of the church that I mentioned before. I had a feeling this man lived here forever as he knows the story of each hill, each house. The “Kholodnyi Yar” as before needs heroes. And in new looks they come as historians, activists, leaders of the public opinion. It seems Nazar has collected much from each and the “Yar” has produced him for imprinting its biography and perpetuate its heritage. Behind the brisk look, hard-working hands and gamesome voice stand hundreds of pages of historic works about the history of the “Kholdnyi Yar” and the Cherkasy region. And once again the “Kholodnyi Yar” has demonstrated its hospitability through Nazar when the next day I was rescued from hunger by the edible generosity of this man.
And so our conversation with this deep and powerful place has begun. The place that is a cradle of a myriad of legends and true facts about the human’s bravery and staunchness. We restart the “Image Mapping 2016” project in the “Kholodnyi Yar”.
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