From Russia with love...

It’s a tradition to celebrate this day on the 25th of May in every school of the Russian Federation. On the 24th of May the graduates visited their last classes and now a difficult period of taking exams lies ahead.
All the schools existing more than a year celebrate the holiday. There is no strict order of celebrating, some schools follow one way every year but other schools choose to celebrate this holiday in a different way, trying to invent something new.
Traditionally there is a ceremonial line in the morning when graduates and first-former are gathered in front of their school or in the stadium. The teachers tell a summing-up, give advices to the graduates who enter a grown-up life. Then by tradition the graduates lead first-former to school by hand. After that the graduates, their parents and teachers come to the assembly hall. The children usually make a concert; it is a funny and merry part of the holiday. The hall is nicely decorated.
The graduates usually look pretty good on the day. There is funny tradition that they wear a school form looking like small children. Girls make tails, tie white bows. Sometimes they hang up little bells with a red bow.
When the ceremony is over, children usually go home, change their clothes and go to have fun. It is really nice to spend time going along the river by boat. It is usually prepared beforehand. Some people rent a café or a cruiser. The graduates get presents, but they also try to make presents to their schools. For example, some pupils plant trees near the school in the autumn and in spring when they leave the school, they will hear the rustle of leaves in The Graduates Alley.

Wars always begin suddenly. In 1941 the most horrible, the closest war for Russia began – the World War II. They say we could not stop the fascists without heavy losses.

Russia lost over 26 MILLION PEOPLE. 26 MILLION PEOPLE – this figure sounds like a verdict. Just imagine – it is the population of the whole country like Norway.
In Berlin operation in 1945 at the end of the War over 2.5 million soldiers and officers were involved. There were 6250 tanks and self-propelled mountings, 7500 planes. During the first day of the liberation the Red Army lost over 15 000 soldiers and officers. During the whole Berlin operation about 352 000 people were killed. The battling lasted for two weeks. The Russian army smashed 70 infantry, 12 armoured and 11 motorized divisions. 480 000 people were taken prisoner.

On the 9th of May it was announced that Germany signed the act of unconditional surrender. On the 24th of June there was a victory parade in the Red Square.

It’s difficult for us - Russian people - to remember what happened there during the World War II. Difficult to look at our miserable worn-out elderly people who had lived through it. There is almost no family in Russia who has not lost somebody – a wife, a husband, children, parents, sisters and brothers – in the World War II.
The Victory Day celebrated in Russia on the 9th of May is one of the most respected, the saddiest but at the same time the happiest holiday.

Glory, glory to the people who struggled for the sake of their country! May their memory live on forever!