For Paul, "everyone mattered"

Also: what I want you to know about Ukraine [View in browser](    [❤️]( March 6, 2022 Dear Cog reader, Rows of premature infants on ventilators in makeshift neonatal intensive care units relocated to cramped bomb shelters. Employees forced to work at gunpoint in “occupied” nuclear power plants. Shelled-out apartment buildings burning until only ashes remain. These are just a few of the horrific images out of Ukraine this week. The devastation and destruction being rained upon the Ukrainian people is hard for anyone to stomach. But it’s especially painful for a former resident of one of the country’s largest cities, Kharkiv. Andrew Evans first arrived in Ukraine in 1994 as a Mormon missionary. He left two years later — but not for long. His love for the country and its people kept bringing him back: first as a NATO intern, then as a graduate student researching Russian foreign policy, then to research and write the first English-language guidebook to Ukraine. Over the years, and through his work, he became especially well versed in Ukrainian history. In [an essay for Cog]( this week, he recounts the country’s long, bloody history, which has been “shaped by repeated invasion, massacre, exploitation and oppression by its closest neighbor and largest foe: Russia.” “Ukraine’s survival depends on making it through the night,” Evans writes. “But how long is the night in Ukraine?” Also this week, writer Jason Prokowiew [knits together]( world history and family trauma, turning to the question: What might be the impact of this Russian invasion on the children fleeing Ukraine — and the children of those children? Prokowiew's father was displaced from his home when the Nazis invaded Belarus in June 1941. Though his entire family was massacred, he managed to survive the brutal regime's occupation, eventually making it to the United States. But his survival wasn't without a cost. "On many a whiskey-fueled night, my father took his trauma out on his children, using his fists to let out the rage," Prokowiew writes. And finally, it’s been nearly two weeks since the unexpected death of Dr. Paul Farmer, who co-founded Partners in Health. Farmer touched millions of lives, and adoring tributes abound. But I do hope you’ll spend a few minutes reading through [the 14 short pieces]( we commissioned and compiled from some of his nearest and dearest friends and colleagues. It's a powerful testament to his legacy — chock full of revealing anecdotes. In the spirit of Farmer and what is happening in Ukraine, I’ll leave you with these words, from Farmer’s colleague Daniel Palazuelos: “I will always work to remember his greatest lesson: Nothing is sustainable except for how we sustain each other.” Frannie Carr Toth Editor, Cognoscenti [Follow]( Support the news   Must Reads [What I want you to know about Ukraine]( Ukrainians have survived centuries of oppression, writes Andrew Evans. This is only the latest storm in the long Russian winter. [Read more.]( [What I want you to know about Ukraine]( Ukrainians have survived centuries of oppression, writes Andrew Evans. This is only the latest storm in the long Russian winter. [Read more.]( [For Paul, 'everyone mattered': Colleagues and friends remember Paul Farmer, in their own words]( From WBUR's Cognoscenti: Dr. Paul Farmer died last week at 62. More than a dozen of his friends and colleagues share their most memorable stories, reflecting on his life and legacy. [Read more.]( [For Paul, 'everyone mattered': Colleagues and friends remember Paul Farmer, in their own words]( From WBUR's Cognoscenti: Dr. Paul Farmer died last week at 62. More than a dozen of his friends and colleagues share their most memorable stories, reflecting on his life and legacy. [Read more.]( [I'd never worn the Star of David. That changed in 2022]( After the Colleyville hostage crisis, I wanted to publicly identify as a Jew, writes Judy Bolton-Fasman. [Read more.]( [I'd never worn the Star of David. That changed in 2022]( After the Colleyville hostage crisis, I wanted to publicly identify as a Jew, writes Judy Bolton-Fasman. [Read more.]( [500,000 Ukrainians have fled so far. What does it mean to lose your home, your life?]( Jason Prokowiew's father was displaced from his home when Nazi Germany invaded Belarus in 1941. His father bore the trauma of those years for the rest of his life, as did Jason and his siblings. [Read more.]( [500,000 Ukrainians have fled so far. What does it mean to lose your home, your life?]( Jason Prokowiew's father was displaced from his home when Nazi Germany invaded Belarus in 1941. His father bore the trauma of those years for the rest of his life, as did Jason and his siblings. [Read more.]( [Ketanji Brown Jackson isn't a radical — despite what the GOP wants you to think]( Conservatives want to discredit Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson, writes retired federal Judge Nancy Gertner. Here's why their criticism doesn't hold up. [Read more.]( [Ketanji Brown Jackson isn't a radical — despite what the GOP wants you to think]( Conservatives want to discredit Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson, writes retired federal Judge Nancy Gertner. Here's why their criticism doesn't hold up. [Read more.]( What We're Reading - "The implication is clear: war is a natural state for people of color, while white people naturally gravitate toward peace." "[They are ‘civilised’ and ‘look like us’: the racist coverage of Ukraine]( The Guardian. - "If the vaccines are safe ... that’s meaningful to me both as a parent and as a statistician." "[I’m a Parent and a Statistician. There’s a Smarter Way to Think About the Under-5 Vaccine.]( The New York Times. - "So, what are adults teaching when we tell children to look away?" "[Dear parents: Don’t just tell your kids not to ‘stare’ at mine]( The Washington Post. "[O]ur well-informed and thoughtful colleagues are nearly as divided on the issue of masks as the rest of America ... Why?" — Pranay Sinha and Scott Heysell, "[People are asking the wrong question about masks]( ICYMI [Understanding (and taming) your COVID anger]( Two years into the pandemic, exhaustion, cognitive overload and perceived injustice have combined to make people very, very angry. Dr. Molly Colvin explains what’s happening in our brains. [Read more.]( [Understanding (and taming) your COVID anger]( Two years into the pandemic, exhaustion, cognitive overload and perceived injustice have combined to make people very, very angry. Dr. Molly Colvin explains what’s happening in our brains. [Read more.]( If you’d like to write for Cognoscenti, send your submission, pasted into your email and not as an attachment, to opinion@wbur.org. Please tell us in one line what the piece is about, and please tell us in one line who you are. 😎 Forward to a friend. They can sign up [here](. 📣 Give us your feedback: newsletters@wbur.org 📧 Get more WBUR stories sent to your inbox. [Check out all of our newsletter offerings.]( Support the news     Want to change how you receive these emails? Stop getting this newsletter by [updating your preferences.](  I don't want to hear from WBUR anymore. Unsubscribe from all WBUR editorial newsletters [here.](  Interested in learning more about corporate sponsorship? [Click here.]( Copyright © 2022 WBUR-FM, All rights reserved.