A Ukrainian refugee who returned to Kyiv said she would not seek asylum again here as she thinks the scarce accommodation should be kept for those fleeing cities totally annihilated by the war.
Yulia Klymenko doesnt want to be a burden on 'such a beautiful country' while her city is somewhat still liveable, despite her nine-year-old son being given school workshops on how to handle explosives safely.
The 35-year-old and her son Severyn are now preparing for a harsh winter amid daily power outages of up to six hours and renewed attacks on the city by drones.
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However the young mother who said she found the 'most incredible people' who housed her near Dublin's Merrion Square when they fled the war to come here last April will not seeking further refuge in Ireland at present.
Instead she believes accommodation should be kept for Ukrainian refugees whose cities have been annihilated by Russian attacks.
Yulia and her son returned to the 'relative safety' of Kyiv last August as she missed her family and husband Oleksandr.
Remarkably, on her return her dad showed Yulia a picture of him in Ireland 40 years ago while on a break during long fishing trips and said that he never thought that Ireland would be giving his daughter and grandson refuge during a war.
"When we finally decided to leave our country, Ireland was a spontaneous decision. I didn't have any friends or relatives living in the EU and the refugees who fled like me were trying to settle in different countries. I had heard of it being a really friendly place from my father who had visited briefly before I was born when he worked on board a Soviet fishing vessel which docked in Ireland in the 80s.
"We arrived in early April, a little nervous and without any plans but we were blessed to meet the most brilliant Irish people who hosted us and supported us all the way.
"We had never met them before we arrived but they took care of us as if we were their family. They were and are so kind, caring and big-hearted.
"I can honestly say that Dublin became my second home. I've never had such a feeling in a foreign country before and I hope our friendships, forged by crazy circumstances, will last for long years.
"We were sure the war would end soon but then one month passed, then another and I realised that it may last for many years.
"All my family is in Kyiv, including my husband. When my son was playing in wonderful Dublin playgrounds, he always noticed that there were fathers with other children but not with him.
"We had to come back as soon as it was safe enough. I have an air raid app on my phone which warns of shellings.
"Each time I receive a warning, I text my family to see if they are alive and then I worry in case my message will be unanswered. It's an experience I wouldn't wish anyone to feel but at least I am here and not thousands of miles from my family.
"In the last few weeks, there has been active shelling and lots of drones which we call Iranian drones mopeds because they buzz very loudly. They are stuffed with explosives and metal cubes to do the most damage.
"The power station in Kyiv was hit last week and we have bought a generator for household appliances and firewood to cook outside if we need to. This is the first wartime winter for my whole family.
"While there is no truly safe place in Ukraine, I believe some people must stay to pay taxes, support the economics and support the soldiers on the front line.
"My son's school is now online and he recently attended a workshop on the safe handling of explosive objects and on first aid. Imagine a child having to do that?
"We are well aware that there is no safe place here. There are fewer hits in Kyiv than in Zaporizhzhya but people are still being killed here. What can we do? To retreat means to hand everyone over to genocide. Our only option is to resist further. Unfortunately freedom is not free.
"While Dublin is now my second home, Europe is already too over-crowded with refugees and especially Ireland with its housing crisis.
'I don't want to be a burden on this beautiful country while Kyiv is still more or less liveable.
"I think it would be better to give people from occupied and devastated cities a chance to settle abroad first as they have literally nowhere to go back to.
"I live in a detached house with gas heating but the situation in an apartment building is more grim. A flat without electricity is basically unfit for life. There is no water supply, no heating and if the pipes rupture because of freezing, they are hard to fix. Winter is going to be hard.
"Hopefully one day, I will get back to Ireland as a normal tourist but until then, I wish its people happiness, prosperity and peace."
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