The girl in the photo is me, Vlada, from the city of Kherson in southern Ukraine. The Russian occupied it at the beginning of the full-scale invasion - despite a strong patriotic resistance movement. In November 2022, the city was liberated by Ukrainian defenders. I left Kherson for a while for safety, but then I returned. It was there that I was injured by ammunition fragments. I fought for my life, but the injuries were severe... 

As a little girl, as my parents said, I was restless. I didn't cry much, even if I got hurt, I didn't get too upset. I was friendly, smiling. I had a lot of friends. I was successful at school. I took part in extracurricular activities: I loved to sing and recited poetry expressively. After school, I went to study to become a hairdresser. I was already able to cut my grandmother's hair beautifully. 

During the full-scale war, I met a guy whom I fell in love with. We had a dog, which I dreamed of so much! 

In the summer of 2023, my beloved joined the Ukrainian defenders. We dreamed of getting married after I turned 18 y.o. But I did not live to see it. 

One day, my grandmother and I were walking down the street when the enemy hit the city with Grad rockets. The fragments hit my lungs and brain. The doctors gave me a chance to recover, but... I could not survive those injuries.