The item pictured is my office desk calendar and it has an interesting (slightly) story.
When I moved to Indonesia, I packed a similar desk calendar in my suitcases that I purchased at Tsum in Bishkek. That Soviet metal desk calendar depicted Hercules slaying the Nemean Lion as one of his 12 labors and was an item I deeply enjoyed having on my desk in Naryn. Sadly, that calendar was lost/destroyed/stolen by Indonesian Customs and I’ve missed having an industrial Soviet calendar on my desk ever since.
Fortunately, I was able to travel to Kyrgyzstan in June to attend UCA graduation and one of the places I visited in Bishkek was the Tsum Shopping Bazaar. The antique shop where I purchased the desk calendar used to have at least a dozen, but when I visited there was only one left. This one. And I purchased it immediately, even though I had no idea of the identity of the building pictured on the calendar.
Now, my new industrial Soviet desk calendar sits proudly on my desk in Jakarta. The day and the date indicators work perfectly and can easily be changed, but the month indicator is jammed and stuck on November. But, no worries, I am so happy to have an industrial Soviet desk calendar again: that it is imperfect functionally really doesn’t matter.
Still, I was incredibly curious about the mysterious building depicted on my new 1960s era calendar. After doing a bit of Internet research, I discovered that the building is actually the Kharkiv Train Station located in the city of Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city. At that time, Kharkiv was part of the Soviet Union and the station was a popular landmark for industrial calendars and other souvenirs.
Now, each morning, when I arrive at my office and change the day and date, I have a visual reminder of the Ukraine and it motivates me to take one action each day to support the Ukranian people through either political or economic action. It also motivates me to consider all the former Soviet peoples laboring under horrible situations. I’m specifically thinking of our sisters and brothers in Khorog and GBAO. As, I rotate my calendar over each day, I send my heartfelt wishes across the planet to them and spend a few minutes writing a brief note to my Senators or Congressperson to advocate that the U.S. take firmer action against the government of Tajikistan, or I do research to see if there are other ways an outsider like me can help.
And what you thought was an ancient, obsolete Soviet calendar souvenir is actually something more: it replaces something I've lost, it represents fond memories of my years in Kyrgyzstan and, more importantly, it serves as a reminder to never forget persecuted peoples and to always seek out ways to have a positive impact in the world, no matter how small that impact might be.
What Kharkiv Station looks like nowadays.
Ukranians attempting to flee their country via Kharkiv Station earlier this year.
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