Atatürk was a great hero who devoted himself to his nation. His dream of being a soldier, which started when he was young, never changed, he would become a great soldier and free his nation from the yoke of foreigners and liberate them. He worked hard to achieve his goal. He always focused on the same goal, while hope was sprouting where those blue eyes were, and happiness was sprouting on the faces of those who saw his blond hair. He knew, he would…
After a long and difficult education period, Atatürk successfully graduated and set out for his provincial duty on 1905. His victories since then have led to the development and awareness of the country with each passing day. There was no one who had not heard his name, bow respectfully before him. What a great man that Mustafa Kemal was… He was born like a star over the country. He took care of education, justice, economy and health, and made great progress in all of them. He was aware of the admiring eyes, which gave him strength and increased his motivation.
While all this was going on, the enemy did not stand still. The soldiers in the army were harassed, hungry and miserable. Soldiers who left their families alone and went to war, women who left their children to rush to help the army, and many young children… If you knew how difficult life was for these young people who wanted to join the army before they could even complete their education… But the times of war are the times when the feeling of solidarity is most intense. Atatürk, who came to power to lead the army in this period when people were the bravest and worked with determination, was so proud. I’m sure he wouldn’t have had his back when he was around people like that.
The key to the salvation of the Turkish people, who had deteriorated at the end of the First World War, was in the hands of Mustafa Kemal. Knowing this, he went to Samsun on a big ferry-Bandırma- on 19 May 1919. His aim was to start the War of Independence and to bring prosperity to the Turkish people. Enemies invading from all sides were putting the armies in a difficult position. Many commanders had undertaken the organizing task and were trying to do their best. At the end of these three years, when we bid farewell to 640.000 soldiers who resisted to the last drop of their blood, and fought on three great fronts, we achieved victory.
But it was not over yet, Atatürk had some other things planned. As a result of the agreements they signed, the Republic of Turkey was established. Another dream had come true. Officially… We were a nation that would no longer be divided, the people’s trust in the army had increased and people took a peaceful breath, they had succeeded, they would always succeed…
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December 27, 1919… It was one of the most important, emotional and enthusiastic moments in history. A smile on all of our faces, tears of happiness and the joy of seeing Atatürk… The great leader who gave us these days would come to Ankara and see us… More importantly, we will see him and we would have the opportunity to meet the endless sea eyes of this person whose name we will write on jewels… Can you imagine the importance of this?
There was a festive mood all over the country that day. The excitement over the people of Ankara was overflowing, we wanted to shout, shout proudly and hug our future. He was our past, present and future. He would never leave us alone, we would feel his hand on our shoulder all the time. The sacrifices he made would not be wasted, even if he was passed away, we would be his representatives on earth.
We put on our best clothes and went out into the square. My eyes were always looking for him, I wanted to meet those blues, to feel like I was in the deepest part of a vast sea. Finally, my eyes fell on a nobleman in a suit, holding a hat. 27th December, 1919… I saw… Atatürk was there! He was greeting his people from the deep blue. We were the ones who should thank and be grateful… But he once again expressed his love for us with his usual politeness and upright stance. Atatürk’s words echoed in my ears: Victory is for those who can say “Victory is mine”.