I was 8 when the Soviet Union collapsed. So I didn’t care much that a whole layer of culture died and a new era for my country had begun. After all, I was just a child who happened to be born in the USSR and grew up in Russia. Not that the change of the name did it, but changes were there. Among other things that seemed to mutate was the whole atmosphere. The Soviet youth subculture was gone for good. My friends and I didn’t wear red pioneer ties, weren’t taught that Lenin was the greatest and wisest man ever, and were not engaged in the wide range of activities, like helping elderly ladies to cross the road or collecting scrap metal. We were left to our own devices.
The 90s were a harsh time. The hardest thing was not the change of the political course, not the absence of products in shops, and not even terrible unemployment and a pittance of a salary people got for the job they did (my mom, being a teacher of music, had to be a cashier and a receptionist at the same time to make both ends meet). It was what adults had to deal with. As for the kids, we faced hardships of a different kind. We seemed to live in society which did not have any ideas about itself. People just were too busy solving more mundane problems. The change of the political course made the whole nation change its idea of itself. But the early 90s witnessed not just the change of attitudes, the trick was, attitudes simply were not there.
I happened to be a part of the first generation which wasn’t brainwashed in any way. My parents’ generation was taught to be good Soviet citizens, to be proud of their country and to think of it as the best one in the world, which definitely made their lives much easier. My peers had to make up their own minds and see for themselves.
Now when the disoriented 90s are over and I am a young adult, in retrospect that time seems to have been a good thing. We devised our own ways of thinking about our country and loving it, because our overwrought and baffled parents could not be our guides in search of identity. We had to do that on our own, but it turned out to be an alluring journey. We learned to think independently, and in modern world this quality is weighed in gold.
Living in Russia is hard at times – in terms of psychological comfort, in the first place. Dealing with rudeness, aggression and narrow-mindedness can put you out, but it also teaches you to be tough, calm and resourceful. Really, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. It’s what I tell myself every time the pressure is just too much.
Young people are the hope of any country. My peers are open-minded and enthusiastic to do something about their lives. We are what is called young blood. We win scholarships to go abroad and study, we graduate with honors and start building great careers. We are active participants in the life of our communities. And we care for our country. We give it a new, better feel of itself. We are returning Russia its identity.
« return.