".. With tears in his eyes"
http://m-guk.livejournal.com/19462.html
Gennady Bodrov portraits of soldiers with the real people of their
work he did on Valaam. A few words about the Valaam for invalids of war and labor. First "wards" were brought there in 1950. The living conditions were very difficult: electricity, for example, spent only in 1952. Director of the orphanage - Ivan Korolev - called himself "King of Balaam" and considered himself entitled to freely dispose of everything and everyone. For example, he took away their patients medals and wore them himself, claimed that he had the title of "Hero of the Soviet Union" (which is not true).
Medical care was no. Staff are usually drunk. Often bedridden patients "forgot" to turn over, and they were got bedsores worms.
But most people tormented feelings of abandonment, worthlessness. There have been cases of suicide. Once disabled managed by stumps of arms and legs to climb the bell tower of the monastery. At the bottom of his friends were playing dominoes. He shouted: "Guys, watch out!" (In this state man thought about the other!) - Rolled over the opening and flew down ...
The worst place in the boarding school was considered a former Nicholas Skete. It contained people who lost their mind and memory, as well as so-called samovars: people with disabilities without arms and legs. There have been cases where these "samovars" orderlies carried "walk" - in baskets hung on the branches of trees. Sometimes "forget" them there for the night. In cold weather, happened, people froze to death ...
Lost in thought, a disabled war veteran, a former intelligence officer Viktor Popkov raises his arm in a vigorous gesture, as if fending off an unbearable thought about the possibility of a new war.
Alexander Podosenov the age of 17 he volunteered for the front. He became an officer. In Karelia, was wounded by a bullet in his head right through. On the island of Valaam on Lake Ladoga, lived post-war years, paralyzed, still sitting on cushions.
When the artist painted Michael Kazankova, that was 90 years old. Profound wisdom shines every wrinkle of his stern face. In the three wars he had a chance to participate: Russian-Japanese (1904-1905 gg.), World (1914-1918 gg.), World (1941-1945 gg.). And always, he fought bravely: the First World awarded two crosses of St. George and for the struggle against German fascism was awarded the Order of the Red Star and several medals.
The picture shows George Zotov, disabled veteran of the village near Moscow Fenino. Leafing through the newspaper files of the war years, a veteran of mentally re-turns to the past. He returned, and how many comrades left there on the battlefield! Expensive, very heavy price they paid for the victory over fascism.
Basil Lobachyov defended Moscow, was wounded. Amputated due to gangrene of the hands and feet. And it would be quite helpless, if not his wife Lydia, too, during the war, lost both legs. And since healed, supporting each other. They were born two sons.
Hero-sailor Alexei Chkheidze artist met in a village near Moscow dunks.
... Winter 1945. Budapest. Storm of the Royal Palace. The group of Marines entered the underground galleries of the palace and did not allow the Nazis to blow up the monument of world architecture. The masterpiece was saved for humanity, but almost all of his rescuers were killed. Alexei Chkheidze, miraculously survived, endured several operations with amputated hands, blind, almost completely lost his hearing, and now finds the strength to make a joke: he ironically calls himself a "man-prosthesis."
There is life evolved high purity, morality and heroism. Michael lived a life Zvezdochkin. With inguinal hernia he volunteered to go to the front. Was disabled, but hid it because in a difficult time for the country could not remain on the sidelines. He commanded an artillery calculations. The war ended in Berlin.
Scout Seraphim Komissarov. Fought as a partisan in Belorussia. While a job is frozen into the winter night in the swamp, where she was found only in the morning and literally cut down the ice.
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