My Tailor Ali Bey.

We have known each other for more than twenty five years.He loves his job and works neatly to please the women.He does his best to make the women look good and smart in the dresses he makes.We usually have a nice but short chat when I go to his small business shop for fitting.I alwasy appreciate his work.

My Evening Dress

It is amazing that I could find time to have tailored my dress for my daughter's wedding.It has not been completed yet.I hope my Tailor Ali Bey can work for long years as I may need his tailoring again in future.

I hope I can be chic as a mother of bride at the wedding I am looking forward to.

Bic Bici

Yeni bakıcıyı garajdan almak Helene ve bana düştü.Adana'nın çok sıcak bir gününde bakıcıyı beklerken Helene'i Bici biciyle tanıştırdım.Adana'lıların pek sevdiği bu serinletici hafif tatlıyı arkadaşım pek beğendi.Mutlu dakikalarımızdı.

Getting Aged is difficult!

Bu sayfama son yazdığımdan beri o kadar çok şeyle uğraştım ki,zaman bulup hemen yazamadım.Yalnışını yakaladığım yaşlı annemin bakıcısının işine son vermek zorunda kalmam,kendisine karşı olduğumu zanneden ablamla sürtüşmelerim bana zor günler yaşattı.Elizabeth ve Helene ile önceden kararlaştırdığımız gibi iki günde olsa yazlıkta beraber olmak için annemi de alıp yazlığa gittim.Dizleri kireçlemeden dolayı nerdeyse çalışmayan annemi acil ihtiyaçlar için bile iki basamak merdiven çıkartmakta çok zorlandım.Gece nöbetlerim de uykusuz geçti.Arzuladığım zamanı ayıramadım yabancı arkadaşlarıma.Deniz kıyısına bile inemeden döndük yazlıktan.Petrol istasyonundaki lavoboya annemi götürmek bir felaketti.Üç bayan zor hallettik.Şunu anladım ki yaşlılarımız memleketimize mobil olmamalı.Çünkü seyehat ettiklerinde hiç bir kolaylık yok onlar için.

Yeni bakıcı işe başladı ama ona evi ve annemin rutin yaşamını öğretmek için sabah ve akşam gitmek zorunda olmak kolay olmadı bana.Şimdilik herşey iyi gidiyor ama yazlıkta anneme kiraladığım evde umarım annem mutlu olur.Yürüteci ve seyyar WC si hazır.Bu arada da Yunanistan'a gidiş vizesi almak için turizm acentasına baş vurdum.İstenilen evrakları kısa zamanda hazırlasamda yazlığa rahatca gitsem.Şunu öğrendim ki insanlar yaşlılığına gençken hazırlanmalı.Sağlık ve maddi koşullarını iyi ayarlamalı.Zor yaşlanmak çok zor annemden gördüğüm kadarıyla.Yeni bakıcıyla uzun zaman beraber olurlar inşallah.

Yelken Kulupteki Lale Çayı

Adanada 'da yoğun günlerim devam ediyor.Annemin bakıcı sorunu,Göz muayenesi,alışverişi,evimin işleri,kızımın düğünü için terzi provalarım,okumam gereken kitabım derken kendim için hiç birşey yapamadığımı düşündüm birazcık kitap okumanın dışında ve yirmi yıldır üyesi olduğum Türk,Amerikan ve Uluslararası Kadınlar Derneğinin Lale Çayına gitmeye karar vererek atladım arabama.Menderes Bulvarı boyunca araba kullanmak hoşuma gitti.Baraj Gölü kıyısı herzaman Adana'lıların uğrak yeridir ama bu sabah pek kalabalık değildi.Çam ağaçlarının gölgesine arabamı park edip,hoş zaman geçireceğimi düşünerek girdim içeri.Herzamanki gibi büfe zengindi.En hoş olanı'da genç üyelerimizin salsa ve tango gösterileriydi.Ayşen Cox dansa gönül veren enerjik yapısıyla eşi ile çok hoş tango yaptı ve çok alkış aldı.Bir çok tanıdık yüz görmek ,sohbet edip hatır sormak ta güzeldi.Salı günü ben de olacak Türkçe Okuma grubundaki arkadaşlara kitabımızı beğenip beğenmedikleri hakkındaki sorularıma olumlu cevap alınca,toplantımızın zevkli geçeceğini düşündüm .Evet hoş zaman geçirdim.

Üç güzelim birarada

Eylül'de katıldı artık kitap ve dergi okumaya!Özleyeceğim onları..

Evcilik oyunu

Eve dönüş günlerim yaklaştıkça,Eylül ile daha fazla beraber olmaya çalıştım.Kızımın evini düzeltmeye yardımcı oldu tabii daha çok dağıtarak.Arzu'nun çok kullandığı el örgüsü şapkayı buldum.Annesi de kullanmıştı.Şapkayı Eylül'e giydirdiğimde her iki kızımın çocukluklarını anımsadım.Lülüme'de yakıştı doğrusu.

İstanbul günlerim

13 Mayıs İstanbul'a geldiğimden beri ,başka türlü iş yoğunluğum başladı.Büyük kızımın gelinlik provaları,Selanik'e gidecek eşyalarının toplanıp paketlenmesi.Torunum Eylül'e de zaman ayırmak istediğimden iki ev arası gidiş gelişlerle işleri kotarmaya çalışıyorum.Gelinlik provalarını izlerken geriye gitmemem mümkün değil.'Ne zaman büyüdün de gelin olacaksın kuzum?'Dün gibi beraber evcilik oynadığımız günler! İpin ucunu bana vererek 'talla talla'deyişin çok gerilerde değil sanki.

Eylül'de katıldı provanın birine,teyzesine hayranlıkla izledi,ben de onları.

Tea and Börek by the Lake !

Anneler günü annem ve kayınvalidemi göl kıyısındaki,yöre kadınlarının pişirdiği ve servisini yaptığı kır kahvesine götürdük.Her ikiside peynirli ve ıspanaklı saç böreklerini zevkle yediler.Nice anneler gününde beraber olmak dileklerimle.

My friends from yayla.

I have a mountain house up on the Toros mountain. I loved to spend hot summer time with my neighbours there. It was amazing to watch the morning haze over the pine trees closed to the site and breathe in the fresh air .I used wake to singing birds and couldn't go back to sleep not to miss listening to the wild birds singing beautifuly. The tea times I shared with neighbours were memorible for me. We would usually chat about our youth , our wedding ceremonies and mother in -laws. Each of us had different interesting stories from the other that made us burst into laughter.People in the south of Turkey go to the mountains since the old times although it was so difficult to travel up on carriages.Today,it only takes 45 minutes to go from door to door.We sometime cometogether in a cafe or restaurant in Adana to remember our yayla days .

EYLÜL IS MY LÜLÜM!

Eylül is my only grandaughter.Whenever she calls me 'anneanne'I feel deeply impressed.I think I will spoil her again although I know'when grandparents come in,discipline is out.'well,I live far from her and can't see her often.She is just a little ,lovely darling of me.I am looking forward to the time being with her soon.

My Reading Group.

One of my hobbies is reading.I can not realize how time passes when I read.I sometimes feel like I am one of the characters in the book.And I think about the events ,time and the place and compare it with my life and speak to myself,'If I were her,I would do this and that.'I love to share my opinions with my friends in in my reading group.It is amazing to listen to different opinions about the same events in the book we read.

We also share the delicious snack and the tea prepared by the host lady .It is an activity I love very much.

I love my mum!

I have waken up to another busy day again.I have to go to the bank that takes my time to be in the queueu,I must attend my Turkish Reading Group meeting in the afternoon,I have to go for a shopping for my mum and must see her,I have to cook for me and for my husband.And I have to start packing for my trip to İstanbul next Wednesday.

Mum is 83 ,she has a carer but I am the only who take care of her and her carer too.And I must visit her daily since we moved her house from Ankara to Adana.I sometimes think that mum forgets about my own life that I need to have a space for myself.I love her so much if only she could realize I have also my own private life to be busy with!She has poor eyesight and she is getting more forgetful and confused. What makes me feel sad is she won't be better than what is now as the time goes by.We will celebrate Mothers' Day this Sunday and I want to make it special.I will see my lovely mother -in -law too.

What friends are for?

An old friend of mine visited me last week.We were friends almost for 40 years.We both had really an enjoyable time together.We also went see another friend from college.It was amazing to be together with him and his wife.They took us to the next town called Antakya where we could taste different delicious dishes of the region.We were so pleased to receive a kind hospitality and warm welcome from them.Spice bazaar was a must to see and buy world famous herbs and spice.It is the second important multicultural city in Turkey where people from different religion lived peacefuly.

İskenderun is one of the main harbours by the Mediterranian.We old friends watched the turqoise see, chatted about old days while sipping our tea at Petek Cafe on our way back to Adana .I was happy that I could have this opportuninty although I had so many tasks to do in my busy life.

Adana Fen Lisesi

As soon as I returned my country,I was invited to an annual Kebap Party.It was another exciting day to be with my old collegues and students.Some have become Drs,some are Engineers now.I remembered where they used to sit in my classroom when they were students.I could feel how they were excited to be in their school and with their teachers for the occasion.It was nice to know that they were helping the new students by telling them their life experiences.I am proud of them all.

Regency Time

I am quiet interested in History of England and the literature.I had read books by Jane Austen when I was studying English at a college and I was impressed very much but I wanted to read them all again and her biography when I visited Jane Austen museum in Bath.It was definetly exciting to visit the city where she lived for a while.

Here I am at at the wedding !

It was the first time I attended an English wedding party.I found it enjoyable and ıt was similar to our modern wedding ceremonies in Turkey.I was quite happy to see my cousin's only son getting married and also was delighted to do the third reading.

Wedding Day

Saturday 14th March was the day when May Oakley’s young cousin was married. He asked her to read a Native American Blessing at the ceremony. May was very happy to agree.

Here I am , enjoying the English Spring sunshine for a few minutes before going to prepare for the wedding.
The blessing is from a Native American ceremony

APACHE MARRIAGE BLESSING
Now you will feel no rain, for each of you will be the shelter for each other.
Now you will feel no cold, for each of you will be the warmth for the other.
Now you are two persons, but there is only one life before you.
Go now to your dwelling place to enter into the days of your life together.
And may your days be good and long upon the earth.

Circus

I loved the Circus as it has been well protected and I could feel the history in every step I did.It was impossible not to respect trees grown themselves.

Here I am in front of the Recipie of the Restaurant.

Bath Spa

I did it! I drank a full glass of the famous waters and lived to tell the tale.

The Pump Room was magnificent and the atmosphere was amazing. Getting my glass filled from the spring flowing from the little dolphin was a special moment. Through the window I could see the pool of warm emerald green water with the constant swirl of water rising up from deep below the surface.

A visit to Bath

Tomorrow it will be my first visit to this beautiful city. They tell me that the waters are very good for your health but they taste disgusting. Soon, I'll see for myself.

The last two weeks

Busy???? and then some more!

My feet have not touched the ground since my plane landed at Heathrow on 10th March. So many old friends to visit, so many places to see, such a long list of English things to buy. A mum always has a lot to do and even while I'm here on holiday, I'm still BUSY.