Yasemin Yazıcı

It’s Yasemin.

How does one remember being human? Through what we share, the people we love, or the routines we keep? Every conversation with Yasemin pulls us into depth, each time a little further. Whether our beliefs shape our lives or we shape them through our beliefs is uncertain. But one thing is clear. One of Yasemin’s childhood beliefs was a nightly ritual before sleep. After receiving her goodnight kiss from her mother, her child-sized heart would send a prayer to God, asking to protect everyone she loved. Each of her “Worry Dolls” would hear her troubles as she placed them under her pillow, solving her problems overnight. Could this be a ritual everyone, young or old, might benefit from?
If we put aside the metaphorical flower of her heart, Yasemin has always believed that her favorite flowers should be shared. White roses top her list, more noble and elegant, she says, than red ones. Her name gives her a special bond with jasmine. Its scent evokes summer and spring, and she admires anyone with jasmine blooming in their garden. She loves to pick a bloom and tuck it into her hair. Orchids, she finds, are stunning at home, though she struggles to keep them alive. A little flower education might be in order. She adored daisies until the day her boyfriend gifted her a giant bouquet, and she sneezed and itched uncontrollably. Beyond these, lilies and peonies also have her affection. Ultimately, white flowers hold her heart.

Her imaginative play and childhood curiosities often foreshadowed her future interests and pursuits. Ariel, the red-haired mermaid from The Little Mermaid, captivated her imagination. She longed for hair as vibrant as Ariel’s and would envision herself swimming in that world, legs fused like a tail, singing along to every song in the film. From bedding to stationery, mermaid motifs filled her childhood life, small tokens of a deep, imaginative attachment.

Yasemin’s multilingual ability surprises those around her. She speaks six languages, Turkish, French, English, Spanish, Russian, and Italian, and is currently learning Portuguese. French, in particular, lived inside her mind for years, surfacing reflexively whenever she grew frustrated. Thoughts and words often intertwine in her head, and she sometimes hesitates to reconstruct them in Turkish. Yet mastering six languages is a source of pride, feeding her dream of speaking ten, with Arabic and Korean next in line. Each new language, for her, is a doorway into another world.

Food, too, carries ritual and joy for Yasemin. Pickles are more than a snack, they are a tiny ceremony. Even a single pickle can brighten her day. At a burger joint, she always requests extra pickles, and if others will not eat theirs, she happily claims them, a small triumph in her personal rhythm of life. It is in these minor delights that she finds her approach to the modern world. Happiness can be found in the smallest details.

Denim, on the other hand, is an extension of her self. Jeans, especially dark blue ones, are a second skin, versatile enough to pair with sneakers or heels, season after season. Every rip and touch carries memory. One pair even became a bag from her mother, a small object bridging past and present. Denim, in many ways, weaves her story.