Amid the tremors and tragedies of war in Ukraine, children in Kyiv — including evacuees from other parts of the country — took the time to decorate traditional Ukrainian Easter eggs on Friday, ahead of Orthodox Easter this year.
Yet given the Russian forces' relentless attacks on Ukraine, which began on Feb. 24, 2022, nearly 60 days ago, the usually festive and fun activity took on a more patriotic tone.
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"Many people are diverting from tradition a little, not drawing the usual images like stars, flowers," Mariya Poshyvailo, who works at the Ivan Honchar Museum National Center of Folk Culture, told Reuters in an interview.
"Instead, they want to draw something current, like Ukraine's trident symbol, or write slogans like 'Glory to Ukraine,' ‘Glory to the Heroes.’ What is close to them," she added.
Nine-year old Bohdana was evacuated from the northern Ukrainian region of Chernihiv, which suffered amid heavy Russian military activity.
Ukrainian servicemen are shown riding atop an armored fighting vehicle on Tuesday as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues at an unknown location in Eastern Ukraine. (Press service of the Ukrainian Ground Forces/Handout via REUTERS)
Ahead of Orthodox Easter on April 24, this child was painting her egg in the colors of orange and gold.
"It's the continuation of life ... happiness," she said.
Eggs decorated with beeswax, dye
Last week — on Sunday, April 17, 2022 — Roman Catholics and Protestants marked Easter, in accordance with the Gregorian calendar.
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Meanwhile, Eastern Orthodox churches celebrate Easter this coming Sunday, using the older Julian calendar.
A colorful collection of Easter eggs arranged in a basket, along with daffodils, are shown. "Pysanky" eggs are decorated with beeswax and dye. (iStock)
For Christians all over the world, Easter commemorates the day that followers believe Jesus Christ was resurrected more than 2,000 years ago following his crucifixion.
The "pysanky" eggs — which are decorated with beeswax and dye — will be carried to Kyiv's Maidan square at a memorial for "the Heavenly Hundred."
That's a reference to the more than 100 protesters who were gunned down in the Maidan uprising that toppled President Viktor Yanukovich in 2014.
Some beautifully decorated Easter eggs are seen here. In Ukraine, Easter egg decorating is a beautiful art form that began centuries ago. (iStock)
"This is, firstly, a symbol of life," Tetyana Poshyvaylo, deputy head of the Ivan Honchar Museum, told Reuters.
"I am holding a nucleus of this, the birth of life. And it has always strengthened us and is the amulet of the house," she said.
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In Ukraine, Easter egg decorating is a beautiful art form that began centuries ago, according to a variety of sources.
The Ukrainian Easter eggs known as pysanky are decorated using a batik wax-resistance method. ("Pysaty" means "to write.") Such decorated eggs can be found in many parts of Eastern Europe.
A change for wartime
The head of Ukraine's Orthodox church asked clergy and the faithful this week to forgo nighttime Easter services in those areas of the country that are affected by fighting.
Soldiers place the Ukrainian flag on the coffin of 41-year-old soldier Simakov Oleksandr, during his funeral ceremony, after he was killed in action, at the Lychakiv cemetery, in Lviv, western Ukraine, Monday, April 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty) (AP)
That is because they feared that Russian bombardments would continue during the Orthodox Easter period.
Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that his country plans to reopen its embassy in Ukraine's capital of Kyiv next week, as Fox News Digital reported on Friday afternoon.
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In other developments, Ukrainian police who are investigating the aftermath of fighting in the Kyiv region found the bodies of over 1,000 civilians, according to local media reports on Friday.
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Reuters contributed to this report.
