February 28 and what does March hold for us

Kyiv still fighting on and the Ukrainian people continue to slow the Russian advance. When I was a very young child Russia was not our dire enemy.  Our countries had fought together to free Europe from the stranglehold that encompassed it. Russian soldiers and the people bravely fought on against the Nazis as the western powers gradually built up an arsenal to go back to the continent and defeat the Nazis from the west as Russia fought valiantly in the east. The West also took back North Africa and landed on the south of Europe through Italy pushing; always pushing the Nazis armies back. All of that happened before I was born. The Americans fought on mostly alone in the Pacific although the British Empire also did what they could. There was no point to having the huge war ships in the Channel so they too were aiding in the Pacific fight and the fight to control the Atlantic. My first memory though is of my brothers pretending to be airplanes, as we listened to the radio, flying into Berlin in 1948 and then I learned that Russia had cut off access by land to the city (but at three I did not take all of that in). It was later when we were talking that I understood that memory. It was this loss of partnership between the Soviet Union (Russia principally) and the West in the late 40s that we are seeing once again. Russian leadership does not want to be a democracy; her people maybe want more democracy I really have no ideas on that but the oligarchy which controls Russia under Putin prefer to keep an iron clad hand on that country. But people are meant to be free; at least as free as you can be without taking away the freedom of those around you. The Russian people have suffered so much I hope that they can find freedom to make their own decisions. Why do people think that they can hold people captive like serfdom of old? 

Hopefully the peace talks between Ukraine and Russia will lead to a ceasefire. No more loss of life; Russian soldiers should be home looking after their country not dying on a battlefield far from home. Ukrainian people should be living their lives not hiding in bomb shelters and having to bury their children their loved ones of all ages.