Deep in Priekule's forests, Dace knits nets like a mother knits socks — except these are for war

While Riga politicians are still debating how best to help Ukraine, in Priekule's forests Dace Rele quietly knits camouflage nets like a mother knits socks — except these are for war. And unlike the help from Riga residents, these nets actually end up where they're needed.

"I've already knitted three nets," Dace proudly tells us, and you can feel she's more proud of this than Riga's mayor is of the new sidewalk in Old Town. "At first I had no knowledge, I watched videos on the internet and followed along." Well, at least someone learned something useful from YouTube — not just how to make avocado toast.

A forestry worker by day, net knitter by night — a true example of Liepaja district multifunctionality. "It's not related to my bread-and-butter work," Dace explains, because apparently Grobiņa forestry doesn't have a camouflage net department. Not yet.

"I help because there's no other way," Dace says simply, and this sentence contains more conscience than the entire Saeima foreign policy committee. Her neighbor is Ukrainian Marija, who has lived in Latvia since the 80s. "She told me about the situation," Dace adds, though honestly, it seems everyone knows about the war situation without neighbor stories.

But there, in Priekule's forests, where neither city noise nor politicians' empty speeches disturb her, Dace knits her nets and knows — her work will truly help someone. And that's more than can be said for many who talk loudly about helping but actually only take selfies for social media.