Today marks exactly 20 years since my high school graduation.
It is hard to believe that so many years have passed. It feels like time just flew by. It feels like it was yesterday… graduation day, the celebration at school, and then meeting the sunrise at the Neryungri reservoir.
Back then, we all dreamed about a bright future and made plans. We wanted to meet again one day, all together. But sadly, life had other plans.
It was June 20, 2006.
And three days later, I left Neryungri forever. Most likely, I will never go back there again.
Everyone from our class went their own way in life. We were scattered around the world, not only to different cities, but to different countries. Some people are no longer alive. Some achieved a lot. Some went downhill. Some people kept their conscience and stand against the war and everything Russia is doing. They speak about it openly. And some people openly support this whole fucked-up shitshow…
Mixed feelings: nostalgia, sadness, anger, and hate.
These two songs fit this mood perfectly:
Тараканы! — “Я смотрю на них”: because I still look at our old school photos, remembering who we used to be before the world went mad, and before the classmates I shared a bench with ended up on the opposite side of the barricades.
The Offspring — “The Kids Aren’t Alright”: because twenty years later, the dreams are shattered, lives are broken, and the kids we used to be are definitely not alright.
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