You're right, the significant other Penguin and I were looking at our photos taken on holiday in Kyiv a few years ago. We visited a University friend and with her family took a road trip and rowed our way down a river for a day and camped under the stars.
This war hits differently. This is a place I've been to and is tangible for me. I feel a similar thing when I've been to Germany and Paris, because I enjoy the history - I've seen where all the history unfolded - and it gives you a little punch in the gut. To know that history is unfolding right now is tough.
I don't know what the endgame is - I only know the world is altering and we're taking a retrograde step back into things we thought we'd left behind in the 20th Century.