So, rule number one in searching for a new home when you're a war refugee (let's call it that): find your community and engage in the work that will be meaningful to you.
—Daria I Photographer I Ukraine - United-Kingdom
daria
Now I work as a translator between Ukrainians and British people. It's important for me to do something that not only brings in money but also benefits my people. In general, to feel at home, it's important to work where you feel comfortable and satisfy not only your physical but also the needs of your soul.
In my hometown of Kherson in southern Ukraine, I loved doing manicures and constantly experimenting with designs. It's nice to return to my roots after almost a year of being a refugee. To feel like Kerry from Kherson again, not just a refugee named Daria. Someday, I'll share in this journal how I lived under occupation and how we managed to escape from there.
It is important to me that foreigners understand how awesome Ukrainians are and how they see our culture and become fascinated by the beauty and bravery of our people. Being a Ukrainian refugee is not just about taking something but about giving back. It is important for me to take pride in my roots and for foreigners to enjoy being connected to our culture.
Today, I went on a date with my British-Ukrainian boyfriend to a cat café. It's fascinating how the destinies of people intertwine. The Russians deported his grandfather to Nottingham during World War II. And now, as a forcibly deported Ukrainian in Nottingham, I'm having coffee with the descendant of a Ukrainian ancestor with a similar fate. Now, this struggle is passed on to us. Once he was able to find and build a home here. Perhaps I can do the same?
Thanks to the Ukrainian community, and my friends from the team organising cultural events in Nottingham, I feel involved in a great mission of nurturing and spreading Ukrainian culture, as if I were at home in Ukraine. Having "our people" in another country is important. It keeps a piece of home with you at all times. That's the somewhat whimsical but true beginning.
Almost all of us want to return to Ukraine because there is no better country for us. We are forced to be here. I was forcibly deported, to put it bluntly. That's why we are new Ukrainians in England, and the majority of us will return to our homeland.
