Oksana at Shastia

The gas station on the outskirts of Shastia was empty. Oksana, standing at the street corner in front of the gas station, hadn’t seen a car in hours. The city was emptying. Everyone had to make a difficult choice: go east or go west. Neither of those choices were what Oksana wanted. But a choice must be made.

Oksana asked her brother to decide for them. She asked that he not tell her until she got in his car. Oksana couldn’t make the choice. Like any indecisive person, she passed the burden of free will onto someone else, as much as that concept applies to anyone these days. 

Oksana and her brother made arrangements to meet at the very gas station she was waiting at. At 8:00 a.m., Oksana packed two roller bags full of pictures, jewelry, and some clothes. She stood in the Ukrainian winter for hours, waiting for her brother. Eventually, she started waiting for anyone. 

But Shastia was empty. People were moving east, some west. And Oksana’s brother was nowhere to be found. Oksana wept.