As small children, we played war

Wooden bow, arrows, and a gun,
the knife is near a belt.
Once, our childhood was full of fun.

We ran through the fields
with the village neighbors,
taking a sword, a painted shield
without adult worries and labor.

Time has passed,
harsh life befell our fate.
Russian missile strikes rain down,
the heart cherishes pain,

I hate.

Vyacheslav Konoval is a Ukrainian poet whose work is devoted to the most pressing social problems of our time, such as poverty, ecology, relations between the people and the government, and war. His poems have appeared in many magazines, including Anarchy Anthology Archive, International Poetry Anthology, Literary Waves Publishing, Sparks of Kaliopa, Reach of the Song 2022, Diogenes for Culture Journal, and many more. “Scars of my heart from the war:Poetry for Ukraine,” and many more. Vyacheslav’s poems were translated into Spanish, French, Scottish, and Polish languages. His poems also have been read at meetings of various poetry groups, including Newman Poetry Group, Never Talk Innocence, Voicing Art Poetry Reading for Ukraine, Worcester County Poetry, Brussels Writer’s Circle, and many more. He is a member of the Geer Poetry Group (Wales) and a member of the Federation of Scottish Writers.