My post-Ukraine year in review

Last year I lived in Ukraine.

That’s one of the last times I can say that. At least, in relation to my year there from 2017 to 2018. (No, I don’t have any current plans to move there, but who knows what the future holds.)

I actually haven’t been in Ukraine for a year and a half, since I left at the end of June 2018, but it is still comforting to say that I was there last year. It’s a way to mark out my life, to remember what events happened when, if they were pre-Ukraine, Ukraine, or post-Ukraine (a.k.a. pre-Ukraine 2.0).

Saying I lived there last year also gives me an excuse to basically anything I dream to accomplish but have yet to. That’s not to say I haven’t done things I’m proud of since I’ve been back — I’ve worked for some great companies, gotten more into freelance writing, attended Ukrainian dance festivals and instructor workshops, and kept up with posting to my blog.

With Natalya, Hannah, and Kaitlyn in June 2018 on our last night together in Ukraine.

But sometimes I do get caught up in thinking, I should be doing this, I should be living there, I should be better at that. But I just say to myself, It’s OK, you pretty much just moved back from Ukraine, so it’s OK to still be figuring things out. (Even though, some would argue, “pretty much just moved back” might not equal 1.5 years.)

But, newsflash, I don’t need to have an excuse as to why I don’t have my life figured out. Nor do you. So maybe getting rid of the I-lived-in-Ukraine-last-year excuse will be a good thing.

I think about Ukraine every day — yes, lots of what I think about are the memories I made there while studying dance, language, and culture, but also, in my best effort to not just live in the past, I stay up to date with current news and set time aside to learn more about folklore, dance, and traditions.

Though I didn’t make it to the country of my soul at all in 2019, I did fill that void with Ukraine-related things that I could do in Canada. Below are a few highlights. And though these relate to things I’ve done, if you’re longing for the next time you’re in Ukraine or want to learn more about the country in general, the resources below can help with that.

Proofreading for Ukraïner

Since February, I’ve been a volunteer English proofreader for Ukraïner, a website sharing stories about Ukraine and Ukrainians. These aren’t stories that you’d typically see making headlines but rather focus on everyday life in Ukraine — people preserving traditions, people advancing innovations in some way, and so on. The stories give insight into a country that has been misunderstood by those who have never been there, or those who just haven’t learned much about it.

Besides editing articles, I’ve also worked on video subtitles, a full-length documentary (!!), and a book (!!!).

The Ukraïner team is super great, as is the work they do. Read more about my experience proofreading here, and browse the site here.

Ukrainian student organizations from across Canada gathered in Winnipeg for the 2019 SUSK Congress from May 2 to 5.

Photographing SUSK Congress

No, I’m not a student, and no, I was never part of my university’s Ukrainian student organization. But in May, a friend asked if I could take photos of the SUSK Congress. And because I like to be surrounded by everything Ukrainian, I of course said yes.

And I’m glad for it. SUSK (Cоюз Українськoгo Студентства Канади) is the Ukrainian Canadian Students’ Union. Though the focus was on student groups and how to further promote Ukrainian culture across Canada, the discussions that weekend were inspirational for just about anyone. Read some of the key takeaways from the weekend here.

Attending Vegreville’s Ukrainian Pysanka Festival

At the Vegreville Ukrainian Pysanka Festival in July, I met up with two others who I lived with in Ukraine — one was an adjudicator for the dance competition portion, and the other was helping run the festival.

With Hannah and Kaitlyn at the iconic Vegreville pysanka.

I even played a part too: I got to scribe for my friend and adjudicator, Hannah. It was super cool to get to see her apply so much of what we learned while in Ukraine, while of course adding a lot of her own knowledge.

This mini Ukraine reunion was just what I needed after my one-year anniversary of being away from Ukraine. The festival was a good reminder of how strong Ukrainian culture is in Canada and how many people are promoting it and encouraging it. It was also great to see so many friendly faces, who I’ve met at workshops, through friends, and at other festivals.

This was only my second time at the Vegreville festival — I performed there in 2015 with the Troyanda Ukrainian Dance Ensemble — but I hope to get to go again. If you’ve been to Canada’s National Ukrainian Festival in Dauphin (which I’ll for sure be at in 2020!), it’s similar to that but on a bit of a smaller scale.

Learning at dance instructors workshops

In August, I did something I thought I’d never do: I fell in love with Saskatoon.

It’s the city we all love to make fun of, but wow, is there ever a charm to it. I really only spent a few hours wandering around because I was in the area mainly for the Rodovid Academy of Ukrainian Dance (RAUD) instructors workshop.

It was the inaugural year of RAUD, led by Lana Niland, Shannon Gabrush, and Andrey Demeshchuk. In addition to a weekend-long instructors workshop, there was also a week-long dancer workshop, both of which I would recommend, not only to learn a lot from talented instructors but also to meet others with the same interests as you. I didn’t attend the dancer workshop since it was for younger dancers, but from what I heard, it was a well-worth-it week.

Read more about my experience at Rodovid on my blog, and check out the Rodovid website for 2020 dates.

I attended two other dance instructor workshops this year that are worth noting, one at the Manitoba Ukrainian Dance Festival, led by adjudicators Maksym Zabutnyy and Shannon Gabrush, and the other at a new dance studio in Winnipeg, Kazka Dance Collective, organized by Kristina Frykas and led by Andrey Demeshchuk.

Professional development opportunities for Ukrainian dance instructors aren’t that readily available, or at least they haven’t been, historically. But things seem to be shifting, with more people offering more varied options — differing prices, lengths, and focuses. Which is all so exciting for the Ukrainian-Canadian community.

So thanks to all those who put so much effort into hosting, leading, supporting, and attending such events!

Writing about Ukrainian culture

I started this blog in 2017 to document my time in Ukraine, for myself, family, friends, and those wanting to learn more about the country. Two years later, and I am still motivated to regularly post, not only because there is just so much to share about Ukrainian culture but also because encouragement from readers saying they learned a thing or two goes a long way. So thanks for reading!

Besides writing here, I’ve written Ukraine-inspired articles a couple other places:

“Extending cultural roots: Calgary dance ensemble collaborates with Winnipeg performers” (PDF), Ukrainian Winnipeg magazine
- Tryzub Ukrainian Dance Ensemble took its production Heroyam Slava across Western Canada, including to Winnipeg. I helped Tryzub out with a bit of marketing and wrote this article about the show.
“Celebrating Ukrainian Christmas traditions,” Winnipeg Free Press
- Open up your Winnipeg Free Press from Saturday, December 28, flip to G7, and read the culture page to learn about Ukrainian Christmas traditions — there is still plenty of time left in the Ukrainian holiday season to brush up on your traditions or learn a couple new ones. (The “official” end is Jordan/Epiphany on January 19.)
“First time in Lutsk? Here’s what to visit,” travelstoke
- Travelstoke is an app by Matador Network where travellers can share hyper-local tips about places and can interact with others in real-time. It’s kind of like a social media app for travellers. I created one list about 10 places to check out in Lutsk, Ukraine.

Dancing in Troyanda’s 40th anniversary show

With Vancouver Kaitlyn and Winnipeg Hannah.

I started dancing with Selkirk’s Troyanda Ukrainian Dance Ensemble in 2010 and have travelled with the group in Canada and Eastern Europe, including Ukraine in 2017.

I’ve had a lot of special performances in a lot of special places, and this October, I added another to the list: the 40th-anniversary show in Winnipeg, dancing alongside longtime friends, including Hannah, who I lived with in Ukraine and have Ukraine-inspired conversations with on the daily.

Dancing with friends who have become family in front of an audience of more friends and family, including people who travelled across the country to support the show (thanks, Kaitlyn, fellow former resident of Ukraine!), makes for a pretty special feeling.

Attending Hoosli’s 50th anniversary show

Hoosli Ukrainian Male Chorus celebrated its 50th year with a show at Winnipeg’s Centennial Concert Hall. The Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra accompanied Hoosli, and Rusalka Ukrainian Dance Ensemble and opera singer Andriana Chuchman were also a part of the show.

The show was amazing — definitely a highlight of my year. I went with Hannah (surprise, surprise), and we sat in the very front row, which, let me tell you, was an experience. The live orchestra was just a few feet in front of us, and watching them is a show in itself. You can see the musicians’ excitement, their concentration, and the whole time you’re hoping they have a flawless performance and that the timing of the crash of the cymbals is at the exact right time and that no one’s hand slips on the strings. Of course, there were zero mistakes. So pair this with Ukrainian singers and dancers, and you have yourself one heck of a spectacle.

I smiled the entire show. Yet also nearly cried the entire time. (I managed to suppress this to some mild tearing up.) It’s just, I. Was. So. Proud.

I was proud to be from Winnipeg, a city with so many past, current, and up-and-coming Ukrainian culture enthusiasts, people who have, and will continue to, inspired others in Canada and around the world.

Soprano Andriana Chuchman, accordionist Myron Kurjewicz, and Hoosl Ukrainian Male Chorus.

I couldn’t help but think about the dancers and singers I met in Ukraine and who I got to know over a couple months. Could they believe that a city in Canada could sell thousands of tickets to a Ukrainian song and dance show? Could they believe that one event could gather basically the entire Ukrainian community of a city? What would they think of all this? How would they feel?

I can’t read minds, but I can assure you they would be proud.

Sometimes we’d meet people along our yearlong journey who couldn’t comprehend that there were Ukrainian dance groups in Canada. Actually, that reminds me — in Kyiv, we were talking to a group of new friends who were dancers, telling them about how we danced in Canada, and they believed us when we said in Canada, Ukrainian dance is the same, except that the ladies do guys’ steps, and vice versa. That’s how little some knew about Ukrainian dance in culture. (We told them the truth, that ladies to ladies steps and so on, eventually.)

Others, though, did know that there is a strong Ukrainian dance scene in Canada, maybe because they had met other Canadian dancers or because they had travelled to Canada themselves.

In any case, whether they knew about Ukrainian culture in Canada or not, they would have been proud to see this show and honoured to know that Hoosli has celebrated Ukrainian traditions so beautifully and passionately for 50 years. Congrats, Hoosli, on an inspiring show. Cheers to another 50!

Though I didn’t make it to Ukraine this past year, I was able to still stay inspired and feel connected to the country in so many other ways.

I wanted to share all of this with you to offer more places you can check out to learn about Ukraine and to also update you a bit on what I’ve been up to.

But I guess I also had selfish intentions with this post — to remind myself I can celebrate Ukrainian culture in Canada just as strong as when I’m in Ukraine.

I still think it’s about time I go back though. Here’s hoping.