Maverick Mums: Elif
This post is the first in a series from BulkWhiz that we’ve entitled: Maverick Mums. Each article will feature the story of an interesting and exciting Mum who is ‘breaking the mold’ and inspiring us all.
Elif is a Turkish expat that has been living in Dubai for the past 14 years, and she has chickens in her back garden.
She affectionately calls the chickens her girls — she actually has two teenage boys — and she has given them the most fabulous and glamorous names; Yolko Ono, Amelia Egghart, Mary Poopins and Goldie Hen.
Elif had the career. She was Vice President of Human Resources in one of the most globally prestigious companies, traveling all over the world and living the high life. Then one day, she looked at her two toddlers, and saw what a huge difference her constant presence would make to them, how they would flourish.
She quit her position, bought some chickens, started growing her own vegetables and herbs, founded a modest gluten-free baking business…and found peace of mind and contentment.
“Chickens are mean. To each other that is,” she explains. “But they have amazing characters. I can watch them for hours, they soothe me. It is essential for people and animals to live together. It is therapeutic, and they provide the best fertilizer!”
She needs the fertilizer for the plethora of vegetables she grows, which include flat beans, beetroot, carrots, cucumbers, kale, collard greens and tomatoes, and the herbs include basil and parsley. She has purpose built containers for her various veggies and looks after them meticulously.
But at the crux of it, she loves to know where her eggs and her salad ingredients came from. She also gets fresh milk from a farmer in Al Ain to make her own yoghurt and cheese, and it all tastes delicious and fresh.
But it’s not all about the chickens and the veggies. Elif’s story is about finding peace of mind. “I like to stay home a lot, it’s my safe haven. It’s my escape and my reality. I prefer that to being stuck in traffic and stressing for no reason. So, I look for convenience and peace of mind. Whatever I can get online, I do, and whatever I can grow fresh in my garden, I do!”
Elif’s journey has taught her to step back and enjoy the little things, that less is definitely more, and she hopes that other mothers can also find that peace of mind and contentment. For her, going out to the garden to get her freshly laid eggs is like holding happiness in her hands.
