When A T-shirt In California And A Yogurt Expiration Date Viewed At 28,000 Feet Gain Unanticipated Meaning…
At Yuko Kitchen in Los Angeles, California, which crafts some of the finest cookies and serves (and sells) some of the finest teas- sourced from a plantation owned in Japan by the parents of the owner of the restaurant, a member of the team inquires about the origin of a T-shirt on which is printed a phrase in Ukrainian. The member of the team shares that he was born in the city of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. A conversation begins…
On a United Airlines flight, a container of Chobani Greek Style Yogurt included on the breakfast tray… The expiration date catches the eye…. 24 February 2023.
On 24 February 2022, the armed forces of the Russian Federation invaded and further invaded the territory of Ukraine in what Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation (2000-2008 and 2012- ), defined as a Special Military Operation [SMO] then on 22 December 2022 he redefined as a war. The initial invasion by the armed forces of the Russian Federation was in part from the territory of Belarus.
The conflict between the Russian Federation and Ukraine did not commence on 24 February 2022. Its roots began their trajectories on 20 February 2014 when the armed forces of the Russian Federation invaded the Crimean Peninsula and the area known as the Donbas Region (Donetsk Oblast and Luhansk Oblast).
For those who have and continue to venture into Ukraine since 24 February 2022 the process of re-balancing, decompressing, unwinding, and forgetting (though that removal is nearly impossible) once departing Ukraine is a luxury unavailable to residents of Ukraine, including those who have the means to depart and return. Their process of re-balancing and decompression have no opportunity for conclusion. There is no forgetting. Forgiveness? That will derive from intense conversations amongst the mind, soul, and spirit.