Olena stayed in Kyiv with her son from the first days of the war. Her tourism business stopped, the money ran out, and for the first two years she couldn’t leave the city at all.
She began studying essential oils – first for her health, then she understood that conifer scents work on the deepest layers: resentment, fear, despair. They don’t remove emotions, but bring you to a neutral state – the one from which you can make a decision.
“I GIVE THIS SPACE – IT’S NOT CONSENT, IT’S SIMPLY AN ACKNOWLEDGEMENT THAT IT EXISTS. AND THAT NEUTRALISES ALL RESISTANCE.”
That is why the forest became more than a walk for her. She comes here without her phone, breathes consciously, knowing that the conifer air does the same as the oils – neutralises, dissolves what has been stuck inside. The body remembers the state of calm. And then reproduces it even during explosions.
During the war she learned not to search for resources somewhere far away. The place of strength turned out to be nearby – the forest, the trees, the air that had always been there.
“If you are not in contact with your body – how will you make contact with the universe? Nature helps you find that.”
Project: Healing Land.Voices Voice: Olena Location: Kyiv, Ukraine