I arrived in Estonia in September 2022. My parents stayed in Kharkiv. We keep in touch by phone when they have electricity.

My 73-year-old mother and 84-year-old father live on the 10th floor. Due to frequent power outages, the elevator in their building doesn’t work, and they can't even leave the apartment in case of an air raid. This spring, a bomb exploded near their building. All the windows shattered, the doors were damaged, and cracks appeared in the walls.

They are still living without windows. They can't replace them themselves – they don’t have the resources. Most of their income goes to my mother’s treatment; she has cancer. They simply don’t have the strength or money to prepare for winter, as everything goes to cover immediate expenses.

It's unclear if they can rely on central heating this winter. If not, my parents plan to use electric heaters when there is power. During outages, they will use a small potbelly wood-burning stove (burzuika), which requires wood that they have to buy.

It feels like not everyone in Estonia fully understands what's happening in frontline cities. People still live in houses with broken windows and cracked walls, even as freezing nights approach. Not everyone has the means to move to a safer place. Those who have never lived in such conditions find it hard to understand. Ukrainians received a lot of help initially, but as the war drags on, many people are tired and wish to distance themselves from it.

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