Shpuk. Shpuk was an incredible guy.
When we first met, I told him that with a surname like that, he didn't even need a call sign. I still don't know if he had one. Shpuk was enough.
Shpuk fought from the very beginning. After the ATO, he constantly helped veterans when it wasn't yet mainstream. He was very actively involved in helping Invictus – not just as a trainer, but as a mentor. In essence, he was a bridge between professional athletes and coaches and veterans.
Everyone knew Shpuk, and Shpuk knew everyone.
He always had this interesting smile. You know, a pessimist's smile. Though he never gave in to despair.
And you know what sport Shpuk did? Trail running. I learned this from Taras himself. Trail running is the craziest sport in the world. It's for those who consider a marathon a light walk. You have to run through mountains, swamps, in any weather. And he didn't just do it – he was an ambassador for it. A true specialist in pain.
Taras was killed.
And it really hurts. It's disorienting. For me, at least.
How much war has taken already – I will never get used to it. Never.
Taras Shpuk was there from the beginning to the end. A great example for all of us.
Honor and glory to him.
I don't know how else to support. In the comments there will be a bank account for the family.
Value the living. Remember the fallen.
These aren't just words. This is what I repeat to myself every time I learn of a loss.
War takes. Without logic, without justice, without asking. And each loss is not just a statistic. It's a specific person. With a story. With character. With what made them unique.
Taras was unique.
And what I can do now is remember him. Talk about him. Pass on what he gave me and others.
But also – value those who are still here.
Don't postpone conversations until tomorrow. Don't wait for the "right moment." Don't save warmth for "later."
Later may not come.
I know this not from textbooks. I know this from life. From trenches. From funerals.
And that's why my work is not about "returning to normal." It's about learning to live with what happened. With what changed. With those who didn't return.
Healing is not forgetting.
It's the ability to remember without paralyzing pain. It's the ability to carry memory and simultaneously live on.
Taras Shpuk – I remember. We remember.
And we continue.