Hanna Holts 16, female from Kharkiv

My name is Anya, I’m 16 years old, and I live in Novoselivka. My parents are divorced and live separately in Poland. I’ve been living with my aunt and grandparents for several years. After the end of hostilities in our territory, my grandmother died, and now the three of us live together.

The war came to my house on 24.02.2022. The shelling did not stop, neither day nor night. We were hiding in the basement of our house with the members of my family and our dogs. We had no light, no heat, no warm food, and sometimes even no water. It was scary and cold. But now, these are the realities of my life.

I have a lot of different and fruitful hobbies. One of my biggest hobbies is singing. Singing helps me to relax and express myself. I also love sports. I used to do gymnastics as a kid and also practiced hip-hop dancing. I always try to help as much as I can. I usually feed dogs. Before the war, we had a large farm, but during the fighting, everything died. I also help around the house, and sometimes I help take care of my sick grandfather.

As far as my friends are concerned, I am very lucky. I have many of them, but there are only three close ones who mean a lot to me. With them, I can talk about everything. If I have problems, they will always be able to help and support me. I really appreciate everything they do for me. I value quality over quantity when it comes to friendship.