INCOME

Advice: Be grateful for life’s blessings

Signature: Jessie O’Donnell, Ph.D. Univ. Hrd Knks (Orphan)

Dreams of a Faraway Place

Dear Jessie,

By the time you wake up, I will be on my way to Istanbul. Fear not, I am only going for a few days. I will be back soon. You know I’ve not been myself for a while now, so I am hoping to return refreshed and better company for you. Enclosed is some lira to see you through until I get back.

All I can say is that I need some, yes, I know it’s a dirty word, space.

Yours as ever

Stanley

A Trip Down Memory Lane

Tread of trainers on earth. Rustle of a leaf disturbed by a mild gust. Trickle of light on dusty bushes. Yellow flower of the chrysanthemum, drooped. Mudded wheel ruts made by campsite traffic after rain. A termite mound at the base of a tree was an eroded terracotta pot. A chain gang of track-laying ants crossed his passage – destroyed. Exposed nerve antennae at the back of his neck. The dreaded hand on his shoulder: ‘Where do you think you’re going, Sneaky Stanley?’

Out on to the empty beach of Ölüdeniz. Sand sucked up waves like an asthmatic devouring oxygen. Two fishermen staggered up the beach under the weight of baskets of fish that threatened to topple them. Turned left to walk up the mountain, past a sunken grove littered with oranges so ripe they were rotten. A few isolated stone cottages secreted in between trees. Then rose, steeply, rose into morning. Turned back to see the beach so far down below that waves dashing the shore were white race horses competing at the finishing line. Reached the top, out of breath, the road deserted in both directions. A scarecrow crucified in a field; in the distance a lone whitewashed bungalow with wire rods sticking out of the flat roof.

During the climb Stanley’s mind began to shed its debris. By the time he arrived at the top, he felt lighter. He sat down on a boulder at the bus stop.

For the first time in months he was looking forward to something.

The dolmuş rolled up, packed with elderly women wearing long dresses and shawls, bearing baskets to sell at market, and backpackers departing early for their next destination. The only seat available was next to a stout woman whose crinkled brown hair was tied into a loose bun, topped by a straw hat trimmed with lemon-and lime-coloured petals. He scanned the pearl earrings, coral necklace, the unusual jade dress flared at the sleeves, beribboned at the waist. She lifted her skirts to make room for him.