I’ve started learning Russian and Ukrainian using apps. I can’t ignore the war atrocities committed by the Russian dictatorship, the war admittedly got me interested in learning both languages. I ask myself why that is. Is it just human nature to become interested in the language of a region that causes global chaos? I’d like to say I got interested in Russian because of the works of Losev and Chekhov. But no, it’s because of Putin unfortunately. On the other hand, I’m also learning Korean and Chinese because it is my way of respecting my Asian neighbors whose historical strife with Japan was horrifically bloody and tragic in the past. I am also genuinely interested in reading about their history and food culture.