Song: The Heart Wants What It Wants-Selena Gomez
¤~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~¤
Nadine:
April 2019
Ah! The day has finally arrived! After 5 years of studies, 50+ exams, innumerous unplanned hangouts and long drives with my Trio, the day had come when I would finally say goodbye to all the two faced bitches and my asshole ex, whom I, unwillingly, had to face every single day since we were a small batch of 118 people. I was more than delighted. I'd normally get emotional and shed a tear or two in such situations but today I was as happy as I could be.
Our batch was the most intelligent of the lot, but it lacked unity. Everyone was envious of whoever succeeded or scored the most. The cool/popular group of our batch didn't want anyone to come on the top, and if someone would soar high, they'd cut their wings. They loved to drag everyone down in the pit they lived in, including their own 'squad'. They hated everyone, even amongst themselves. No one was loyal. And so, it seemed only fitting as to why I was more than happy to see their faces for the last time before I flew off to the States to complete Step 3 of my Medical License Exam and get my MD degree.
After taking the 'Hippocrates Oath', our class valedictorian gave a short, yet powerful speech. Then our names were called one by one and we were awarded the degree by our Dean.
"Dr. Nadine M." called out, as I went to receive my degree on the stage. I felt so ecstatic. I didn't choose this profession just to get labelled as a 'Doctor', neither did I do it to get proposals from rich and handsome hunks, something commonly seen here. No, I did it because I really did want to serve humanity, as clichèd as it may sound. It was a dream come true.
Since a child, I dreamt of becoming a Doctor. I would receive those cute little Doctor kits, with steths and bandages and hammers and all those cool things that doctors have, as presents for my birthday. I would run around with it, 'operating' on people, giving them medicines, which were actually my favourite candies and doing all sort of weird shiz. This degree was not only an accomplishment for me, but for all those who had high hopes for me, that included my immediate family obviously. Not only was it something I dreamt off, but it was also what my Nana, Baba and my late Dada (paternal grandfather) dreamt of. They wanted someone in their generation to be a doctor, not for the social status or high value they'd get in society, but because they genuinely wanted someone in their family to actually serve humanity. So getting this degree was a big deal.
My Dada died when I was only 3 years of age, so I don't have a good memory of him, but what I do remember is that he loved me a lot, more than his other grandchildren or children. I used to knock over his green jug, containing water, on purpose, whenever I would go to meet him. I would pretend to be the barber and cut his hair with my bare hands. Haha how foolish was I.
"This ones for you Dada." I said to myself as I accepted the degree.
December 2020
I was on my way back to Pakistan. After spending about a year in the US, I was returning with my MD degree in Internal Medicine. On my way back, I had a short stay at Istanbul. Initially it was only a 7 hour stop, but due to bad weather conditions my flight got delayed for a day and a half. I honestly did not mind the delay. I loved the city. Since my flight was delayed by 40 hours, the airport accomodated me with a hotel room and a one day visa, all for free. I had thought of going to the Asian side of the city, because we didn't visit it the last time we came, back in 2015. I was casually waiting for my cab, when something caught my eye. It was a beautiful Turkish shawl, on display at one of the duty free shops on the airport. It seemed very familiar. It was a turquoise coloured shawl with the typical Turkish pattern. I was instantly reminded of where I had seen this before. I had seen a similar shawl at the same shop in the Grand Bazaar where I had my encounter with the 'good-looking Turk in his 20s' 6 years ago from now. The whole thing flashed before my eyes as if it was a TV serial. The encounter, his polite voice, my confused and abrupt answers. His touch, the flirtatious way he said "beautiful eyes" and my facial flush. I hurried my way to the shop to see whether he was there or not. But as luck would have it, he wasn't.
Now my only goal was to find him during my short-lived stay in Istanbul.
YOU ARE READING
A Turkish Delight☆
RomanceTwo different people, belonging to two different countries, spoke different languages but felt a strong attraction towards each other. Was it love? Probably. With just one look, they were deeply influenced by each other. A short lived meeting, they...
