My hospital room, or I’d rather call it a suite, resembled a five star hotel. The view from the window was breathtaking and it all felt calm and serene, except for the noise. The crowd in the waiting room was getting louder and I wondered if there was a medical emergency, somewhere further down the corridor, until my mother-in-law explained that it was just my husband’s extended family filling up the lobby. I was scheduled to have a C-section, so I was amazed to discover that the party had started, before the tiny guest of honour, had even arrived.
Some of you might remember from previous articles, I married into a very big and tight knit Armenian family. Turkish Armenians are an extremely close community and they support one another in all life’s occasions. There always has to be fuss and visitors (and cake). The arrival of a new baby is the best excuse for a family gathering and the birth of my baby was anticipated with more preparations than a royal birth. If Princess Catherine managed to side step the paparazzi when her babies arrived, that was only because they weren’t Armenian relations.
My mother in law had ordered custom made chocolates a month in advance. Nothing like a bit of catering pressure, to bring on those first labor pains. Each individually wrapped truffle was topped with a ribbon and a ceramic angel. “A simple baby favor to give out to all visitors”, said my mother-in-law and I couldn’t protest (because I have seen more elaborate favors consisting of marzipan pacifiers and baby shaped handmade soaps).
The favors, my mother-in-law assured me, where merely a precursor to the main event. You would think that a baby arriving would be a big deal,, but it turned out that I was only providing a side show for the food deliveries, which just kept arriving from my mother-in-law’s kitchen. Nobody complains about hospital food in Turkey and it’s probably because they never get a chance to try it. My mother-in-law ensured that an entire buffet of tea, sandwiches, sherbet (a sweet beverage made of fruit and a dozen spices) and cakes was set up in the hospital. A special book for written messages was provided (and mine was decorated with rhinestones) alongwith a feathered pen, to guarantee that those messages and congratulatory wishes, were written with an extra flourish.
You can forget to pack a night gown and wet wipes, but forgetting to arrange for a caterer and a hairdresser will cost your reputation. Can’t have that baby without being photo ready!
But the family never shows up empty handed. When they come to see the new mom and her baby, they bring gold. Gold is another form of currency in Turkey. And the closer the family member to the newborn, the larger is the gold coin they attach to the baby’s crib while sipping sherbet and snacking on those custom chocolates.
In the two days I spent in the hospital, I probably received a hundred guests. And some two hundred others showed up to the Welcome Baby Party. But that’s a whole other story.