Larissa Babij
May 13 2026
This spring in Ukraine is somber. Everywhere—vibrant green, flowers in bloom. But a late April freeze means meager fruit crops this year.
Where have I been? Too many train rides, new rooms to adjust to, endless gratitude to all the people who have taken me in this year so I can perform my intellectual labors in relative peace and good company.
While my friends who continue to serve in the Armed Forces of Ukraine keep destroying russian targets before those are employed to destroy us, what have I done?
In April, five poems by Maksym Kryvtsov, translated by me and Helena Kernan, appeared in the spring issue of Asymptote, the internationally renowned journal of literary translation. While preparing the publication, I discovered a couple recordings of Kryvtsov reading his poems in autumn 2023, made by Ivan Shapkin but never published before. Listen to the poet and read his poems in English (and original Ukrainian) here: https://www.asymptotejournal.com/poetry/the-firing-trench-maksym-dali-kryvtsov/
In March, I had a conversation across the ocean with Seth Dellinger and Daniel Garner, who each maintain a lively practice of embodied intellectual inquiry they broadcast online. After listening to them discuss how cultivating conversation is fundamental to democracy, I offered to bring in my perspective from Ukraine. Our conversation involved establishing that we inhabit the same world and face similar risks from and responsibility for that world, despite the seemingly obvious differences in our political and physical circumstances. Listen here:
And since January, I’ve been collecting and publishing Ukraine-related events, book reviews, and translations of current reflections from members of Ukraine’s armed forces in the newly launched LUR Culture Brief. Please take a look and subscribe to receive the newsletter each month.
