ODESSA

THE BROTHERS

- A shocking story of a poisoned boy

By: ALEXANDER OSIPOV
Director of the Street Patrol

 

 

 

 

  

Alexander 'Sasha' Osipov is a young father, who studies journalism. For his job, he runs the Mission Possible street patrol. You wouldn't believe right away that a calm, quiet man would be an expert in the underground world of Odessa .

Sasha has been in the dark cellars of the drug youth, tended to a street boy who was taken down off the rope after a suicide attempt, helped burned and bruised children...

The reports from the work locations are often too shocking to be published in our news magazine.

Our choice is to focus on the good news about the children and youth, who have left the streets as the result of this work and with the participation of our group of supporters. At times we publish articles, however, that help you, the readers, to better understand the extremely difficult life of the street children as well as what our workers face on a daily basis. In all of the Mission Possible locations we have to bury and mourn for the dead children that are unwanted to the world, and encounter mental and physical suffering of the children.

Here is a recent report from Sasha. Perhaps we will be able to publish the happy ending to this story one day.

You cannot talk much with these boys. They trust no one. Not even me. They have softened up a little bit, though, after some time.

They are brothers. Alyosha, 16, is the younger. The big brother is Sergey, 18. He has regular features, blond, blue eyes. The younger one reminds of his older brother, but there is a agonizing look fixed on his face that tells of pain and hate. It has been for a long time.

The brothers live in the tunnels in the harbor area, which is one of our patrol areas. They are totally different than the other street children I have met. They are proud and strong and do not participate in the lives of others. They live by their own rules and let no one inside. They are careful not to hurt themselves and do not touch the intoxicating substances. They try to show others and us that they are not street people. They try to create an impression that they need no help and that they are not hungry, but that they are social eaters.

This is only an outer shell, however. A desperation and a total disappointment in life shows in their eyes. For a long time, I did not understand the reason. When I learned about it, though, it made chills go down my spine.

 

The boys used to live in Belgorod . The father died when they were very young. Alyosha left home first, at the age of twelve. Why – he won't tell. From some gestures and the look you can tell that life at home was not very sweet. The boy speaks no ill about the mother, but not good either. He waves his hand and says, ”Well, she...”

A kind, sensitive boy ended up in the middle of the brutal world of the streets. The only thing going for him was his appearance that evokes compassion: when a frail boy begging on the sidewalk looks at a passer-by with his blue eyes, even a hard-hearted person would give him a coin.

I was able to speak with Alyosha when his big brother was away. In Sergey's presence he hardly says a word. From the skimpy sentences and what the other boys tell in secret, I was able to piece together an even that happened about a year ago.

Alyosha then lived with the other boys in the cellar in a suburb of Odessa . He was begging with his friend at the shopping center, when a nice man came to them. A nice, friendly man! He told the boys not to leave, he would come back soon and would bring them something good to eat. The boys were excited as they waited. The man did come back and handed them sweets and pastries with a smile on his face.

After an hour, the boys were starting to feel pain in their stomachs. Another hour later, they were feeling horrible. Then they started to lose their consciousness. Excited about the sweets they had not paid attention to the fact that there was some black powder on them. What it was is unclear, but the consequences were all the more evident.

Alyosha's friend – whose name and fate is known but to God – lost his mind. Perhaps from the pain, perhaps from the poison. Alyosha stayed sane, but many of the intestinal functions were severely impacted. Because of the damaged nerves, he cannot see well, and he is unable to control his eye movements. The hands and head shake and twitch.

In the beginning, his entire body was covered with festering wounds. Chunks of skin and muscle tissue fell off. The only place he was able to lay in his pains was an underground chamber. In the hospital he received first aid and was soon sent off after that.

Sergey had heard what had happened to his brother. He came to Odessa to help him and stayed on the streets. ”Without Sergey, I would surely have died or lost my mind because of the pain,” Alyosha says.

After a year, the wounds in the back started to scar up. Most of the tissue in the shoulders had fallen off. New, tight skin covered his thin shoulders. There are still three open wounds that I try to treat regularly. Other wounds have turned into horrible scars, as if someone had poured boiling tar on his back.

After eating, the brothers always leave as soon as possible. They don't want to talk. During the few short minutes when they sip their soup during our patrol, we try to show them all the love and care that we can, to show them that there is a power of love that can overcome the evil, pain, and hate that they have had to experience.

On the picture: Sasha treats Alyosha's wounds.


Translated by Jari Vesterinen, Jamtrex Language Services