Cleaning as a Fresh Start: How Domestic Tasks Ground Us in a New Country

When we left Ukraine for Oxfordshire, nothing felt normal. The landscape, the manners, the way people spoke—all of it was new. Some of it was lovely; a lot of it was confusing. We had to learn as we went.

Back home, big family gatherings and loud celebrations are normal. Here, things are often quieter and more formal. Different doesn't mean worse, but it takes getting used to. One thing that didn't change was cleaning. A broom works the same. So does the satisfaction of leaving a room spotless.

So cleaning became our anchor. We joined Christina's Cleaners and started going into people's homes across Oxfordshire. Many of those homes are old, full of character. They need proper care. We weren't just "the cleaners"—we were the people who showed up every week to do house cleaning in Oxfordshire, did the job properly, and slowly got to know the area and the clients.

The routine helped. Same tasks, same standards, week in and out. That predictability was something we'd lost. And because we were in different houses and neighbourhoods, we saw how people actually live here. The small talk, the way they treat their homes, the odd invitation for a cuppa. It all added up. Cleaning gave us a way in.

We're part of the community now. Not because we made a big speech about it, but because we turned up, did the work, and built trust. So yes—cleaning was a fresh start. It grounded us when everything else was up in the air, and it helped us feel at home.