“Come Again Tomorrow, and We Can Sit Together Again”

“Come Again Tomorrow, and We Can Sit Together Again” is Nesibe’s recurring farewell to Kemal and the phrase the Keskin family settles on for his visits. Its plainness gives social cover to the reason he cannot openly state for coming: to be with Füsun. The expression makes a private longing sound like the familiar practice of spending time together.

A Euphemism for Visiting

Kemal’s relationship with the Keskin family changes over the years, as do their conversations, expectations, and silences. What remains constant for him is his reason for going: to see Füsun. He assumes that she and her parents are pleased to have him, but because this motive cannot be spoken openly, the family avoids defining him simply as a “guest.” Instead, they agree that he comes to “sit.” Kemal visits four times a week, and the shared wording makes his presence easier to accommodate without naming its underlying purpose.

Nesibe especially favors the expression, which the narrator describes as familiar to Turkish readers but difficult for foreign museum visitors to grasp because it has several uses not captured in a dictionary. It can mean paying a visit, dropping by, or spending time with someone. Her repeated farewell—“Come again tomorrow, Kemal Bey, and we can sit together again.”—turns that flexible everyday phrase into a ritual invitation, both ordinary in form and charged by what Kemal hopes it means.

What “Sitting Together” Includes

The phrase does not mean that the family does nothing but sit at the table. They watch television, sometimes fall silent for long stretches, talk amicably about various things, and share food and raki. In the early years, Nesibe underscores how welcome Kemal is by naming particular plans: “Do come again tomorrow, Kemal Bey, we’re having those stuffed zucchini you love so much for supper,” or “Tomorrow we can watch the ice-skating competition, which they’ll broadcast live.” The meal or program supplies a conventional reason to return, while the invitation to sit together holds the emotional meaning Kemal most wants to hear.

When Nesibe invites him to come, Kemal looks toward Füsun, hoping for a sign of approval, ideally a smile. If she seems to approve, he can believe that the invitation is not deceptive and that they are gathering together as people do. The phrase therefore offers no explicit declaration from Füsun; its force for Kemal depends on her response and on his interpretation of it.

Social Meaning and Narrative Function

Kemal values “to sit together” as a social necessity among relatives, friends, and even people who feel a deep bond without understanding what it means. He contrasts this view with that of intellectuals who deride ordinary people and dismiss the millions in Turkey who speak of sitting together each evening as if they were gathering to do nothing. For him, the phrase honors the significance of shared time precisely without requiring it to become a formal declaration.

The expression also gives the repeated visits their public shape. Kemal’s desire for Füsun remains unstated, but the family’s vocabulary lets him return under the guise of customary hospitality: supper, television, conversation, silence, and the simple act of being in one another’s company. Nesibe’s farewell sustains that arrangement from evening to evening, while leaving its private meaning unresolved.