By İrem Naz Duymuş (AMER/III) & Eda Emekoğlu (AMER/III)
nazduymus@ug.bilkent.edu.tr
eda.emekoglu@ug.bilkent.edu.tr
Celebrating Small Moments—A Farewell Before New Beginnings
As the year gently folds into its final pages, I found myself standing in the “Dear Theo” exhibition at CerModern, surrounded by Van Gogh’s swirling colors and illuminated brushstrokes and the soft echo of his letters to his brother. In that digital room, I was reminded that life is not made of grand gestures but of the small moments we choose to honor:
a shared glance, a warm conversation,
a connection with a place. Van Gogh immortalized such moments—sometimes through brushstrokes, sometimes through words.
Leaving the exhibition, the ordinary felt transformed, as if Van Gogh’s attention to small details had sharpened my own. Perhaps that is why, as I prepare to leave for my Erasmus journey, I feel an urge to pause and take stock of what surrounds me. My friendships, my routines, my campus, the familiar hallways of Bilkent—all the small and seemingly ordinary pieces of my life—feel suddenly more vivid. I feel the sadness of leaving but also the tenderness that comes with noticing what I love. The act of trying to capture these moments makes them brighter, as if someone has subtly adjusted their colors. There is, I suppose, something about leaving that sharpens our capacity to see.
This week, I will host a farewell gathering. Not simply to say goodbye, but to celebrate everything that has carried me to this moment: the late-night laughter with friends, the shared worries before exams, the confidence built through challenges and the people who turned everyday moments into memories. In a way, this farewell is my letter to the people who shaped my days—an attempt to capture our connection the way Van Gogh captured his emotions.
Year’s end often feels like a closing. Yet every ending carries the quiet promise of a beginning. I find myself in an interlude between what I was and what I am becoming. My Erasmus journey is just ahead, but before stepping into it, I want to honor where I stand, celebrate the small moments, cherish the people who have coloured my life and recognize my own growth.