This is a short poem I wrote in Turkish about homesickness the night before I left Istanbul. I had lived there for over three years and was overcome with sadness about leaving such an amazing city behind:
Homesickness…
İstanbul şehrim, evim, kalbim. İstanbul hastalığım aynı zamanda çarem. Mutluluğum, üzgünlüğüm. Hapishanem, özgürlüğüm. İstanbul – bazen beni sevdin, sık sıkı senden nefret ettim. Fakat sensiz asla nefes alamayacağım. Nereye giderim ki, hep benimle seni tutacağım. Hayatım İstanbul. Ruhum İstanbul.
This poem is important to me for two reasons:
Firstly, it showed my grasp of the Turkish language after living in the city for so long. I may not have been fluent but I was finally able to express myself and carry an everyday conversation by the time I left. In the beginning, it was quite difficult to put sentences together but I was able to complete basic tasks, such as shopping, asking for directions, and ordering at a restaurant.
Secondly, it accurately expressed my feelings about Istanbul and life in Istanbul at the time I was leaving. The city became a very important part of my life, and although it could be a difficult place to live, it could also be the most incredible place in the world at the same time.
