April 6, 2022

 

This time, I am the guardian angel.

 

I define a "guardian angel" as someone who appears at the right moment to help another person in need. On April 4th I wrote about a guardian angel (young man) who reached out to help us find the train station at precisely the right time.  Today, I experienced what it's like to be a guardian angel.

When I walked up to the information table in the refugee reception center, I heard a volunteer tell a family of four that he didn't have enough room in his car/van for them.  He was very apologetic as he shook his head, and I could see that the family was very disappointed. I asked him where they wanted to go and he said, "Krakow." I said, "I'm going to Krakow, and I can take all of them!" You should have seen the smiles on their faces. At first their spirits were deflated. Ten seconds later, they were elated, quite an extreme mood swing.

From the translator that I used on the phone, I learned that there were actually two families I was transporting. Alina and her son, Artem, and Katiya and her daughter, Genus.  Alina and Katiya were married to two men who were brothers. They live in the central part of Ukraine that was initially not affected much by the war, but when they heard explosions in the distance, they decided that it was time to leave for the sake of the children. They were very sad to leave their husbands and their parents,

They said that they were very grateful to the Polish people for welcoming them with open arms. I told them that many Americans were supportive of Ukraine and wanted to help them. I said that I had started a fundraising campaign and in less than two weeks, over 150 people had donated $15,000.

As we entered Krakow we noticed several billboards like this, along with Ukrainian flags on flagpoles.  

 

I showed them this photo.

I told them that one of the reasons I came to Poland to help the Ukrainian families was that I hoped the children would remember that an old Asian man helped them during a very difficult time by giving them a ride in his car. And that when they became adults, they would show kindness to others in need.  Alena said that Artem and Genus's childhoods have been destroyed, but she hopes that they can see the good and positive forces in the world even when there is such evil.

 

As we gave warm hugs to each other, Katiya wrote something to me in Ukraine on her phone that was translated to English.

 

"You helped us a lot. thanks. We will soon celebrate the victory of Ukraine and remember you."