Saturday 23 October 2010

Right around the corner


…. is Christmas! Living abroad for a couple of years now, I enjoy the Christmas spirit, I simply love it. Other than the high sentiments, like appreciation, gratefulness and unity, attached to it, Christmas is just a “different” part of the year.

Here in London, it looks that Christmas is just about to arrive, which is certainly correct. Time flies, right? It started in August- yes, August! I was out for shopping one day and all of a sudden I found myself in a hall of Christmas decorations! Stars, tiny doves, deers, crystal balls, fairies, Santa Clause… August? Christmas? Isn’t it a bit early? Then I thought, probably they wanted to lift spirits of people, as everybody is one way or the other suffering from crisis. Then, the weather got cold: OK, sweater time! And then I noticed the lights on the streets, with the shape of a gift box, ribbons, stars… Following that came the Christmas pudding and other delicious food… Finally, last week asI was shopping with my mum, came these:



Hi there!

So now I know that Chrismas is right around the corner!
Lights, presents, food, candies, shopping, shopping, shopping!

I have been lucky enough to see Christmas in a couple of countries (in different continents, different climates, different languages, different traditions, different practices), thanks to my kind friends who invited me to join them on such a special night. One thing certain: It is an extremely special night and people get united.

Close to my flat in Madrid, they always set up a hut in the garden of a shopping mall, with a different theme every year. Once it was Belem, the other year it was a dwarf baking shop, the other year the polar bear family… One could easily spend hours there- that I did! Maybe I get to see them again this year.
Last year, I moved just on Christmas time to London, to be honest I could not entirely manage to get into the mood as I was kind of overwhelmed by the fast pace of my life, however I recall some scenes with the gorgeous Fortnum & Mason window, where every compartment set on a different theme (don’t ask me please the themes, I was sort of missing trying to locate myself geographically, culturally and phonetically). This year I am hoping to deliver a better performance!

My final remark: about shopping part, I believe I should make a comment: Yes, it is shopping time, you get lots of deals and sales yet I should not do any shopping as my horoscope tells me not to. It is a BIG dilemma. So hard! And my horoscope even takes it further: If you REALLY HAVE TO shop, buy something for the kids in your family. Hummm… There are 3 gorgeous kids in my extended family- OK, they get the presents. And then? Would my sister count? Why the horoscope didn’t say “only buy a gift for the kids and let the others buy you”? Then I would happily forward this to all my beloved! ;)

Let’s see what Papa Noel is going to bring me this year!



P.S. Photos taken in Liberty, one of the style & design shrines of London. 

Thursday 21 October 2010

Cocuk akli…

Deyip de gecmeyin; cogumuzdan daha parlak, daha keskin.. Hatta ben cocuklarin biz onlari kandirmak, veya, itiraf edelim, “gecistirmek” istedigimizde, onlara soylediklerimizi “hiimm.. tamam, kanmis goruneyim ama yemezler cicim! Ben nasil olsa kendim kesfederim” diyerek bizi idare ettiklerini dusunurum. Benim de kuzenimin 5 yasinda bir kizi var, ondan biliyorum. Onunlayken boyutum degisiyor, icim zenginlesiyor, ruhum hafifliyor. O kadar zekiler, o kadar kendi dunyalarinda zenginler ki bazen cocuk olasim gelmiyor degil. Oyuncaklardan tutun da ellerindeki sayisiz imkanlara (Ipod, Skype, bir suru yeni ogretici oyuncak….) Benim cocuklugumdan hatirladigim, materyal olarak, Barbie’ler var, legolar, puzzlelar… Sikayet etmiyorum kesinlikle, cocuklugumun tadini cok cikardim ben, ooohhhh!!

Nereden geldim cocuk aklina? Gecen gun “mahalle”mizin parkinda oturuyordum; etraftan cocuk sesleri geliyor, sanki bir okulun teneffus zamanindaki gibi tum cocuklar bahcede, ciglik cigliga bagirip kosturuyorlar (biliyorum, benim de ilkokulum oyleydi ve biz de sanirim amacsizca o eylemi yapardik. Surekli bir kosturma, terleme, oksurme, ki benim literaturumde “terli oksuruk” diye bir element vardir, sadece terlediginde olan oksuruk – hadi, sizin de vardir! Kostururduk bagira cagira ama ne neden kosturdugumuz belli idi, ne de birbirimize ne dedigimiz.. Amacsizca, maksat sirada otururken biriken statik enerjiyi en kisasindan bunyeden atmak)

Sonra zaman gecti, baktim sesler/cigliklar daha yakina geldi. Dedim “okul gezisinin icine dustum; e iyi ben de “misafir abla” (bu da bizim okulda vardi) olarak katilayim bari.” Sonra onumden bir Ipek Yolu kervani gecmeye basladi! Metrelerce cocuk: el ele tutusmus, ikili siralar halinde, buyukten kucuge cocuk, cocuk, cocuk… Ondeki ve yanlardaki(tampon) hocalar tarafindan kervandan cikmalari engelleniyordu. Kosmuyorlardi ama bagiris-cagiris; o gurultude sesini duyurmak icin daha da bagiris  ziyadesiyle mevcuttu. Konusuyorlar, etrafa bakiyorlar; sanirim 6-8 yas arasi minik yavrulardi. Uniformali – ama elbette o kadar aktiviteden sonra uniforma “eser” miktarda belli oluyordu, yaka bagir acik, kimi o soguga ragmen kisa corapli, minik ayaklar ve eller, saclar orgulu veya belli ki anne modeli taranmis fakat her nedense dagilmis… Kervan gecer, ben bakarim.

Tam o sirada bir gozum bir minigi yakaladi: “Guvercinler!!!! Guvercinler!! Cabuk kacalim benim guvercinlere alerjim var!!!!”

Dedi ve benim dudaklara bir gulumseme kondu. Ne dusundu acaba ki  guvercinlere alerjisi oldugunu soyledi? Belki guvercinleri sevmiyor, belki “alerji” kelimesini yeni ogrendi, belki onun aklinda benim aklima gelmeyen bambaska bir neden  var… Ama cocuk akli iste, beni hep sasirtiyor hem de gulduruyor. Mumkuse onlarla daha fazla zaman gecirmek lazim, dedigim gibi, insanin boyutu degisiyor, ruhu hafifliyor, bambaska bir dunyaya gidiyor.

P.S. Guvercin alerjisi var mi arastirmadim; belki de cidden vardir!