It’s been over twenty years since my student days. I didn’t do KVN — that old Soviet-style comedy show (you know the type). I spent all my time with mathematics. Not because I had to — because I loved it.
Back then, a state scholarship barely bought you a couple of Snickers bars. My parents’ salaries were often delayed for months and rarely reached thirty dollars a month. Utility bills piled up like snow in January.
In those tough times, the Soros grant meant the world. It wasn’t just about money — it was about being seen, being supported, and knowing that knowledge was still worth something. I’ll always be grateful to the Soros Foundation for that.
And yet, I remember those years at Drohobych Pedagogical University with real fondness. It was a time of quiet persistence, shared challenges, and small victories that felt big.
Everyone finds their own way. Mine didn’t lead to the stage — it led to libraries, notebooks, and the quiet joy of learning something that finally made sense.
ally made sense.