Bicycles, skinned knees, flying pigtails, flower wreaths—these are a few of the snapshots that capture the exuberance of youth in waking up in silence. In Germany, Ukrainian children seeking refuge from war find an unlikely sanctuary in their new home: a former Wehrmacht military barracks. The children romp and play, ushering in new lives, surrounded by the compound’s unyielding metal fences and concrete structures. As they explore the mysterious military garrison, they come to understand it is a remnant of a previous generation’s war. In the verdant greenery and fields of wildflowers beyond the fences, the children seem to reclaim the freedom and innocence they were forced to leave behind. Skillfully superimposing the past and the present, waking up in silence speaks to the lasting effects of war. KL