my i m a i m a local journalist. i m a localjournalist. i was born in kherson, i grew up in kherson, and i have lived here all my life. my and i have lived here all my life. my wife lydia is an artist and photographer, and we have a five year old daughter. on march the 1st, the russian forces entered ist, the russian forces entered kherson. there had been fighting around kherson for days. every day, we hear explosions and sirens. they re taking our city. everyone is scared. bleep . it s a big risk to get my camera on. we move our mattresses into the corridor, where we are protected by extra walls. and we play games to keep my daughter calm. rumours are everywhere that local officials have sold us out. letting the russian army into kherson city without a fight. for the first few days, everything freezes. schools are closed. government buildings abandoned. factories and offices empty. most people lie low. my city has changed. for decades, ukraine helped feed the world. now, the