December 1st. Arles, France. I’m writing these words at artist residence, in nice surrounding of Mediterranean I am to enjoy next month, trying to collect the memories of my recent travel across Canada, I have a feeling that happened many years ago.
Dear friends, my book “Invisible” is also published in Poland (Anagram publishing house).
Translated by Olga Cyranka.
Information on book tour and purchasing options will be provided soon.
Anna has long acknowledged the fact that she is not like others. She has a hemangioma. You cannot hide this feature, just as there is no point in fighting for the affection of others. There are those who will accept it, and those who will turn away. Anna knows these feelings well, so she decides to dedicate her life to those who society has turned away from, those who find themselves in difficult life circumstances, those who need love. Anna works in a charity organization, she’s really come to understand the depth of life. Throughout the book, she will be the heroine who will support and lift the spirits of others.
As a result of stress, Marta has a hormonal failure and develops alopecia. She is losing her hair rapidly. Marta is an actress and TV presenter. Her hair is her wealth. But now she has to hide her baldness with hats and headscarves. Over time, the situation becomes critical: she is forced to buy a wig, she quits acting, she can no longer do what fulfills her. Struggling with depression, she also eventually attends a support group, trying to cheer herself up and to find meaning. She no longer wants to hide behind a scarf, she no longer wants to hide her new true self. She will have to confess about her illness to those closest to her, but most importantly she will have to accept herself.
One morning Eva wakes up and realizes that her suicide attempt was unsuccessful. She is ashamed, but happy. This means that she has a chance, she has a mission. Long months of rehabilitation, and later psychological support, convince her that vitiligo, which she suffers from, is not the worst thing that can happen to a person. As a rule, fear should be looked directly in the eyes. Eva will become a make-up artist, “making people beautiful”. In this way she will also notice her own beauty.
Adam has Tourette’s syndrome. This disease has been with him since early childhood. He has never had friends, it is difficult for him to make contact with people. He works as a designer, spends most of his time at home, and only occasionally goes out, though even then only in the evenings so as not to attract the attention of many people. He tries to remain unnoticed. Everything changes when he starts attending a support group and meets people like him. He makes friends, learns to communicate, and comes to understand that life becomes much easier when you are not alone, when there is someone who supports you, and also when someone needs your support. From then on, Adam will make attempts to socialize. This is the main thread (or intrigue) of his story.
Dear friends, I’m happy to announce that my book (In)visible is being published in Canada by Guernica Editions, translated by Hanna Leliv and Isaac Wheeler.
The book tells the stories of people with visible disabilities and disorders as they learn to overcome society’s limitations in order to live a full and happy life. It focuses on diversity and inclusion and encourages equality, acceptance and tolerance.
You can buy the book at the link in bio https://linktr.ee/ivan.baidak
And you won’t see me go to school again, wearing a heavy backpack full of books, in which you managed to sneak sweets to cheer me up during breaktime. I will miss these pleasantries of yours, which you constantly invented and how you constantly surprised with your ingenuity. How much I will miss reading bedtime stories, active weekends in nature, even your sometimes annoying lessons or small punishments, which you often invented as a joke, will be missing.
And I sat on the shore of the lake, and my thoughts were clear, and a light wind flirted with me, and I could argue with it with my freedom. For the first time in many years, I felt truly free, my heart was free of worries, I was not dependent on anyone, and I was not obligated to anyone. My most difficult choice of the day was choosing where to dine and wine to celebrate life with.
This is roughly how my notes would sound if I really came here for a literary residency. But there is a war in my country. And they call me a refugee. Therefore, everything is different.
I haven’t had a day off since February 24.
In a parallel life, I could be in Mariupol. It’s been a month since we’ve been hiding in the basement. There are nine of us here. My sister and I, our neighbors and their families. There were more of us, but a neighbor tried to bring us water and came under artillery fire. Didn’t come back. Someone said that they saw his body being thrown into a mass grave.
People survive here, these are real hunger games.
