Video: An incredible love story: what is behind the touching sculpture of hugging old men in Mariinsky Park
2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55
Several years ago, a sculpture was installed in Kiev depicting an elderly man gently pressing an elderly woman to his chest. The history behind this monument hides an entire era full of various events, but in which love is the central line. These two are the Italian Luigi and the Ukrainian Mokrina, who fell in love during the war, but were able to reunite their hearts only in deep old age.
The story of Mokrina Yurzuk and Luigi Pedutto began in 1943. They met in Austria at a POW camp, where they both worked in a garment factory. “It was the first time in my life that I learned what love is,” recalls Luigi Pedutto. Mokrina had a little daughter in her arms, and Luigi secretly sewed handkerchiefs for them, and the girl, in gratitude, shared with him that tiny ration that was given to her for two with her daughter. Once he brought her a warm coat, sewn from separate pieces of fabric, this so amazed Mokrina that she looked at the Italian with new eyes. For two whole years that they spent in prison, the Ukrainian and the Italian hid tender feelings for each other in their hearts from everyone. She knew only a few words in Italian, he learned only a few phrases in Russian, but the lovers understood each other without words.
Luigi called her affectionately Maria, and the girl liked her new name. "." The guy seriously planned to take both Mokrina-Maria and her daughter to his place in Italy after their release, but when the time came and they were really released, fate decreed otherwise. Local authorities did not allow any of the prisoners of war to change their place of residence, and sent the Ukrainian woman back to his homeland, and later Luigi left for Italy.
Each of them had a different life. Luigi remained in Italy, got married and had a child. Mokrina returned to her village, got married and raised three children. Both kept memories of each other all their lives, remembering every minute that they spent together. The Italian tried several times to find his mysterious Mary, but nothing worked. After he was widowed, he resumed his attempts and, by chance, just learned about the program "Wait for me." It was they who helped the Italian to finally get his search off the ground.
“She still has the same dimples on her cheeks,” said Luigi, moving in the studio and watching the story about Mokrin on the screen. By that time, she was also a widow and lived alone in a small house with her own vegetable garden and small farm. And when the woman showed her old photograph, in which she was captured young, Luigi could no longer hold back his tears.
- said then Mokrina Andreevna. - Luigi was incredibly happy to finally meet his beloved, and even though both were over 80, he hugged her and said how beautiful she was. It turned out that before parting 60 years ago, the Italian kept a small lock of Mokrina's hair and kept it all these years. "" - said Luigi through tears, never ceasing to hug Mokrina-Maria.
Later, Luigi finally fulfilled his promise and brought Mokrina to Italy, showed her his house, his olive grove, his vineyard. "" - said Luigi. He even invited her to marry him, but Mokrina said that she wanted everything to remain as it is. "", - said Mokrina Yurzuk. The Italian came to his Ukrainian woman every summer, helped her with the housework, prepared Italian dishes for her, tried to somehow compensate for the time that they spent separately from each other. This story was followed by the Ukrainian TV company "Inter," telling its viewers about it, and they also organized the installation of the monument in the Mariinsky Park in Kiev.
The monument was named "Eternal Love," it was erected next to the bridge, which is popularly called "the bridge of lovers." Many couples of lovers come here to touch the hugging lovers - then, according to the belief that has appeared, you will never part. Luigi himself was at the unveiling of the monument. Mokrina, unfortunately, did not feel well then, and her relatives came instead.
Unfortunately, a few months after the unveiling of the monument, Luigi was suddenly gone. Mokrina was waiting for him, as usual, in August - she cleaned the whole house, prepared Italian newspapers, which he brought for her on previous visits. She asked her grandchildren and great-grandchildren every day if Luigi had called. Relatives could not muster the courage to tell her that this energetic man had died. Upon learning of this sad news, Mokrina burst into tears. "" she said sadly.
Mokrina herself outlived her lover by two years. She died in 2015 and was buried at the local cemetery in Virabovo. "", - said the granddaughter of Mokrina's grandmother Elena Koeva.
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