A Dove

I hopped off my bus from Eyuboglu early today on the way home.  I had to go to the bank in Kadikoy to pick up my Turkish debit/credit card.  I had to walk quicky because the bank closed at 4:30 and I wasn't able to get off my bus until 4:05.  Winding through some short-cuts and the beginning of the rush-hour crowds, I was able to walk in the door at 4:20.  Fortunately someone spoke enough English at the entrance desk to get me a ticket (number 1972) and directed me to the next floor to get some help.

I was worried I would have to come back another day if the clock got to 4:30 and my ticket number didn't come up. (who knows about these things? Turkey is know for it's infamous waiting lines)  But after about 20 minutes I was seen and taken care of.  One lady with a fancy blazer kept pacing in front of me and looking at me (of course I avoided eye-contact), like she was going to go ahead of me.  But, I knew her number was after mine.  What I wasn't sure of was whether she knew someone there that could override ticket numbers.  She looked important and she thought she was important. (who knows about these things?)  I got taken care of first.  I'm smiling just thinking about it.

What I wanted to write about before I go to bed, is what I saw after I left the bank.  Again, I was in the midst of the beginning crowds of pedestrians on the sidewalks of downtown Kadikoy.  I stopped at the crosswalk to wait until the light turned so I could cross.  A man in a blue car slammed on his brakes and stopped just a bit before me. Everyone stops and notices when something like this happens.  As crazy as the traffic and driving is in Istanbul,  you don't hear a lot of screeching tires going on.  

A group of people gathered quickly to point to a dove the man had hit with his blue car.  It was flapping its wing and was smashed on the street between the small car's front and back tires.  The man in the car was so upset about hitting this dove.  The people that were watching were also upset and acted like someone needed to do something.  A big city bus was behind this blue car honking, but this man did not intend to go anywhere until he decided what to do about this dove he hit. 

I crossed soon after, because the light turned and this car had blocked all the on-coming traffic anyway.  This incident shook me.  Not the part about the dove getting killed, but the reaction of the people to this happening.  They were sincerely upset about this little bird getting killed.  They really wanted to help this little dove.  The man in the car was truly shaken.  He wasn't afraid anyone would be angry at him.  He was upset because the bird was dying and he was the cause.

I don't want to judge or reflect on how this made me feel.  I just want to hang on to this feeling.  Like I would try to as the sun is setting after spending a beautiful day on the beach in June.