St. Mykhailo Rides on a White Horse

They say that St. Mykhailo rides on a white horse, meaning that on his feast day of 21 November he brings the first snow. There is no white horse though, the weather is cold, but no snow yet. Four years ago, I wrote:

"Election Day went quietly. In fact it was too quiet here in Lviv, much like the calm before a storm ... As the polls closed at 8 pm, details emerged about the day’s proceedings. All of the fears and suspicions of falsification were realized all across the country."

Four years after the mass demonstrations of November 2004, we can see the development of two distinct events -- the "orange revolution" and the Orange Revolution. The former represents the current state of politics: disappointment, disillusionment, distrust, financial crisis, brawls in parliament, corruption, broken promises. There is no reason to celebrate the "orange revolution."

But the latter recalls an amorphous historical, emotional and spiritual point in space that has passed. It can only be recalled through memory or via the end product of the photographer's eye. The Orange Revolution is to be reckoned with over the long term. In the words of Susan Sontag, "anybody who understands history can't take politics seriously." Is it better to be disappointed than disenfranchised?