A 35-year-old Python programmer from Kyiv named Alisa Tepituk immediately packed her family and pets after the Russians started invading Ukraine. She, her sister, their husbands, and kids, as well as their two dogs, were crammed into a small car as they headed out of the city but they couldn’t even move an inch. The family first traveled 16 hours to another city in Ukraine before finally heading to Poland for safety.
But as they came near the border of Poland, there was already a build-up of heavy traffic. Everyone from Ukraine was trying to escape the country as they feared for their lives. Seeing the long line, the family couldn’t wait to sit, crammed inside the car, for the next three to five days. Not only was it quite a long wait, but they also couldn’t risk being open for attack.
And so, they decided to walk the last 17 kilometers to the border but it wasn’t easy at all as the path was mountains and rivers.
The family started their journey at 4 in the morning in minus seven-degree weather and all of them were going increasingly tired. The kids were already crying because of the cold and Alina was also exhausted but she knew she couldn’t give up. After all, it was her idea to go to the border and they needed to be safe as soon as possible.
But it wasn’t just the kids who were having a hard time as Puyla, one of the two dogs, was also close to giving up. There were times that he would fall down and refuse to stand up again. When Alina asked for help from people, she was told that she should just leave him behind. But she didn’t listen to them because Puyla was her family and he witnessed all the moments of her life.
So she and her husband took turns carrying Puyla just so that he could make it to the border. Thankfully, Puyla stayed very calm and didn’t struggle throughout the walk. Upon arriving at the border, they all had to stay in tents before they were finally able to cross but everything felt worth it because they were all safe and complete as a family. And now, they are all in Poland awaiting to start a new chapter of their life.
Source: Rocky Kanaka
