Psychologists believe that most people throughout life need certain guidelines that help a person build their lives, form life beliefs and improve professional views. We often choose for ourselves such landmarks of famous figures, actors, writers, athletes, because among the role models we were offered, there were not so many women. And if the examples of women’s leadership were made public, they looked too idealized, artificial, and far from our ordinary lives. And such an example for imitation in love of life, endurance, professionalism of the business can be the ordinary person – the woman-leader who lives near us
A woman who overcomes life’s difficulties with her head held high. A man who breaks the stereotypes associated with the perception of «female weakness», proving to everyone that there are strong women who accept fate with dignity, no matter what obstacles it prepares. Such women do not teach. They just live, and their life example, beliefs and position are for us a model of a strong human spirit.
Tomka was born near Zhytomyr in the picturesque village of Velykyi Luh. Did her parents then know how her life would turn out, what trials fate was preparing for her? Hardly, but since childhood, the mother-teacher instilled a love of learning, grandmother – love of God, grandfather – love of homeland. Here are the instructions that Tamara Stepanivna gave us as an example to follow.
Let’s remember our roots
«When sooner or later a nightingale begins its song in a nearby forest or the sun gilds the sky with a bright flash, you will definitely remember something from the past, from the fact that it will never return. This is far from a confession. It’s not even a mention. It lives in me every day…», – Tamara Stepanivna writes in her thoughts. And with memories of the usual path around the house, the bird cherry on the border of the gardens, the viburnum bush above the well becomes at home somehow homely warm and cozy. Mention of the happy smiles of relatives, which give us the strength to fight against everyday life. You can talk about pedigree with Tamara Stepanivna, losing track of time, admiring the details and beauty of literary language: «It’s so good to know that there is a corner of the earth where the paradise of your childhood». Three families lived in my grandfather’s small hut, there were no quarrels, only love and mutual understanding. As if in a distant dream: little sisters with big eyes stand barefoot in the gate, holding slices of baked bread flavored with linseed oil. This taste, apparently, they will never forget.
Let’s appreciate the charms of life
Do we think that the usual things from childhood will become for us like a book of memories? In her thoughts, the woman mentions lindens, inconspicuous to some, but not to her… This makes us think about the people around us who may need help.
«… I cling to them, taking turns hugging them like dear and kind people.
– How do you live here, my friends? I know, I know! Old age is not joy. Live with memories, because I live with them too… »
Valuable in her life was a gift from childhood for two (along with her sister) – an embroidered shirt «red and black threads», which she rejoiced, not even knowing the true spiritual price. Along with the embroidered shirt, she got hopes for a happy life. Preserved to this day…
Let us withstand the trials that fate sends
Tamara Stepanivna was born in the difficult post-war times. Years passed… Stepfather and mother built their own new house. The whole large family took part in the construction. We never heard her complain about poverty, except for the weird black lace-up shoes under her white prom dress that stuck in her memory. From a young age, Tamara Stepanivna understood the importance of education. Her studies at the vocation of the soul and under the guidance of her mother, who was also a teacher, took place at the Faculty of Philology of Rivne State University for the Humanities. And here, like thunder in the clear sky, a serious illness of the mother… «My grandmother, grandmother! Did you know or did you know that the fate of your granddaughter will be cool? I must have felt it, because even today, many years later, I remember a kind look with sad gray eyes (it was only later, after my mother’s death, that they turned red, always inflamed with tears after a prematurely abandoned life)». Over time, old wounds heal, but often fate prepares new trials – a man dies. Tamara Stepanivna raised her sons on her own, despite the difficulties and serious illnesses, and now three grandchildren are healing the wounds of the past with their magic laughter.
Let’s be professionals
If you do the job, then giving your all to your favorite cause – that’s how Tamara Stepanovna Dyachenko worked in our college for 45 years. She was not just a teacher, but also a friend and mentor to colleagues and students. Her creative and professional achievements are a solid foundation for educational activities. Tamara Stepanivna’s instructions are optimistic, imbued with life-affirming and humanistic motives, and are always a support in a difficult life situation.
Is it not a reason to call Tamara Dyachenko a woman-leader to stand up to the challenges of fate, to teach students all her life and to study on her own? For me – yes! Such women make the history of our city every day.
The story about Tamara Dyachenko was prepared by Inna Lukyanchuk, a graduate of the essay contest, a teacher at the Ivan Ogienko Zhytomyr Vocational College of Culture and Arts, in the framework of the project «Women’s portraits of leadership», which took place with the support of the Department of Family, Youth and Sports of Zhytomyr City Council.
