Where did the war find you, how did you learn about the full-scale invasion of the rashists on February 24?

The war found me at home in Kharkiv, and I learned about it after looking outside my window. I jumped out of my bed, like the rest of my compatriots, around 5 a.m. with the first thought in my sleepy head: these can't be fireworks. I wanted to watch the news  and there was no Internet. I started calling my friends, and yes, it wasn't a firework indeed.

At what day or moment after the full-scale invasion started did you decide to go to war to defend Ukraine?

Well, I woke up, had my coffee, packed my stuff and went to the military commissariat. They said that they needed people with military experience, then wrote down my phone number and said, "You will be called if necessary." And so I came home and sat down in the middle of the room. Something was rattling outside the window, the glass was rattling, the walls were moving, and there I was, sitting like Buddha and thinking, "Well, what now?" Of course, they did not call from the military commissariat. The territorial defense also refused. So it was a long story. But thanks to personal acquaintances and a cunning blat, everything worked out eventually. Fortunately, I didn't have to bribe anyone)). It happened on April 1. And it was the best April Fool's joke in my life. In a good sense, of course.

Are you writing poems at war?

Surprisingly, several small poems were born here. What is even more surprising is that they are about war. But there is no pathos, it is either a very intimate lyric or an ironic one. They were written in the "trench period", when we were at the frontline. As it turned out, rhyming under the shelling is not that bad. What else can you do under the shelling, if not write poems? Soon I'm leaving for the position zero again, let's see what my muse has prepared for me there.

Which of your artist friends are currently at the frontline?

Almost everyone. My publisher Andrii Honcharuk is at the front. Poet Yevhen Ivanych Manzhenko, poet Ihor Mitrov, poet Ihor Astapenko, novelist Artem Chekh — they are all fighting here. Poetess Olenka Herasymiuk is a paramedic. Poet and musician Oleh Kadanov is a volunteer. Well, the whole country knows about Khlyvniuk and Polozhynskyi. Hundreds of people from creative professions are fighting, as well as from many other professions. As it doesn’t even matter who you are, an artist or not. Though, the tasks are slightly different. Of course, it is clear that everything is more difficult for all freelancers and such lazy people like me, because the army is all about discipline and daily hard physical work.

Are there any acquaintances and friends of yours who have disappointed you during these difficult times?

Those who could have disappointed me did so a long time ago. And as for the rest... either I am not disappointed, or they are not my friends and acquaintances))

Now we are very much pressed for time, understanding that every day can be our last. Happiness and love acquired their true meanings, because now we understand how fragile they are. What about love at the front? How often do boys and girls get married now without postponing this event for later? Have you personally witnessed such events?

Our commander, for example, got married at a distance without leaving a trench. But this is not a romantic story... it's just that they are expecting a child soon. And we in the army are used to order.

Well, as you probably can guess, we don’t have time for cupids here.

Do you know what is the main problem at war? That they fire at us? Yes, they do, but the main problem is that we simply cannot wash up. Imagine that you dig under the scorching sun from dawn till dusk, sleep on the ground, and at the same time do not wash. And it is for two weeks in a row. No film about the war will give a mere idea of ​​this, because cinema has not yet learned to convey smells. Love..Let's talk about it after our Victory.

At the end of our short blitz interview, I would kindly ask you to recite your poem for espreso.tv. Maybe about love, or about war... It's up to you.