What home means to me

What does home mean to me? Good question… For me, my home is where my family is. At the end of the school day, I know that I do not just go somewhere, I go to my sweet home. Some people don’t have a place to live. They don’t know where to go. This scares me. I want every person to know where they go and to know that this is their home! Being safe is the most important part of every home. When you are safe, you do not have to worry about yourself. Before I came to Canada, I was in Ukraine. As you may know, in Ukraine there is a terrible war. I was there when the war started. You feel depressed all the time when you know that there is war in your country, that every hour a lot of Ukrainians die defending my country, my town. Soldiers left their families, they risked their lives for other Ukrainians and for me. Every night all Ukrainians ask questions like “will I wake up tomorrow”? You never know when bombs are going to fell down. This is really scary. I lived in Zhytomyr, it’s next to Kyiv. Russian bombs destroyed a beautiful school in my city, damaged hospitals and some houses. Some people died because of it. You are always scared and you are not safe every moment of your life. Home is a shelter from storms - all sorts of storms, said William J. Bennett. It is a place where people are happy, love and encourage each other. It is a place where you do not have to sit in the underground floor, where is always cold and damp, and wait till the alarm or sounds of bombs end. One day, my sister, my mom and I were getting ready to sleep. We always pray to God before going to bed. When we were praying, the lights turned off and we heard the bomb flying just above our home. We thought this is just one bomb and that’s it. However, another bomb flew above our heads. That was extremely loud and scary. What I want to say is that to be safe in your home is the most important. We had a home in Ukraine, but it is difficult to call it home when you feel unsafe and uncertain every day… I was born in Ukraine. I have lived there almost all my life. I had a house there. Not our own home, we lived on rent. It does not matter, home is where my family is. My house in Ukraine is where my sister and I grew up. I was in this house almost all my life. Next to this house was my grandma and my grandpa’s house. Now my grandparents are still in Ukraine and I miss them very much. We can't visit them because it is still not safe. I really want to see them all but unfortunately it is impossible now. I have lived here in Canada for 8 months. My parents, sister and I live here. This is my new safe place. I am so happy for this opportunity! I think that both places are my home, Canada and Ukraine. I believe that the war in Ukraine will be finished soon and it will be a safe place for my grandparents, aunts and cousins to live. We have been praying for them. I live in Canada now. This is my new home. I still have some problems understanding and speaking. But at my home I can understand everything, because we speak in Ukrainian. For me language is really important. Home is not home without your first language. When I speak with my family in my native language I feel calm and happy. When I hear my language, I start to feel good. Protecting people’s language is an important part of protecting their home. In conclusion, a home is where you feel safe with all your family. Safe from war, safe from bad weather, from all sorts of storms. I wish all people to have homes. Welcome to Canada, to my new safe home! Thanks to God for this chance! Let all Canadians and all people have safe places to live!