Viktoria grieves in a windswept cemetery.
She weeps amid rows upon rows of newly dug graves.
Each one is identified with a photograph as well as a regimental flag.
You are my life. She cries, “You’re my heart, my air. I love you.”
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Ruslan was killed in an attack by a tank round in eastern Ukraine.
His three-year old twins don’t get it.
Viktoria said: “We just informed them that their father has become a star in heaven, and that their father is looking out for them from the sky.”
“They ask me for a telephone to call and your heart starts to beat because you don’t know what you should say or how to explain it to a child.
She adds, her voice shaking, that she just told them their dad was busy and couldn’t answer their calls.
Ukraine doesn’t disclose numbers for its deceased, but it is an increasing number.
The rate of casualties is also high.
Soldiers attempt to heal their injuries at a rehabilitation center in Dnipro.
Oleh suffered shrapnel injuries and doctors warned that he could still lose a limb.
His physiotherapist attempts to increase movement in the joint. He tells me that Russian aggression only makes this country stronger.
“Russia tried to hide our history for a long time. We have become more connected to one another and value life more than ever before.
“We are proud of our loved ones and families. Ukraine will flourish once again after the war is over. Definitely.”
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Vladimir Putin’s vision of a quick conquest has turned into an exhausting duel with artillery, with no end in sight.
The fighting in Donbas has been relentless over the past year.
The situation appears to be worsening in the face a Russian offensive.
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Most people have moved to places like Chasiv Yor, near Bakhmut. It is easy to see why.
The artillery is becoming closer every day.
People in this region are often weary and reliant on aid packages to survive, as the fighting continues.
After a long year, this terrible war’s cost is now primarily measured in suffering and pain.
Oleksandr, a retired man, said he sometimes doesn’t know how he continues to go.
“I don’t sleep during the night and I don’t sleep during the day so I’m tired.
“It’s not death, it’s just hell — just suffering.
“I am sensitive and have health issues. My wife isn’t ready for me to go.
New plots are being excavated at the graveyard for soldiers who have not been killed in combat.
Viktoria is not the only Ukrainian grieving the loss of a beloved one.
It’s a grim picture.
It is, however, only one military cemetery in a country that is fighting for its survival.
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