Furkan K.

Health-Prosthetics

Longing for the sky, with broken wings, The cries a seagull hurls at the sea are my weariness. The phoenix rising from the ashes of a burning heart, Are my meticulously hidden, yet forgotten hopes.

I do not ask why the seagull cannot fly, nor do I know the phoenix's terms for return...

Are we the road itself, or merely travelers upon it? Is it in our hands to stop, or to arrive where we wish, when we wish? Sometimes these questions and the search for answers haunt our minds. In short: "Just as time brings what is expected, the day comes when it takes away what it brought." Much like our health.

I was swept into these emotions while reading my brother Furkan’s letter. Countless examples from our surroundings came to mind. Human life is like a bird; here one moment, gone the next. The soul hides so much within, and every breath feels like a rebirth. Furkan woke up perfectly healthy that day, but while helping at an accident scene, he was struck by another vehicle from behind and lost his right leg. Furkan, who spent two years in hospital treatment, was fifteen in 2013 when the accident occurred; he is now twenty-eight.

Following the accident, his elderly mother developed Alzheimer’s and his father Parkinson’s due to grief. Having no other means, he had to use the prosthesis of a disabled person who had committed suicide at the time—until that second-hand prosthetic leg caused wounds and a severe infection. This forced our brother to undergo treatment at Erzurum City Hospital for nearly three months.

And now, God willing, we will support this brave young man and receive his blessings with every healthy step he takes. With the prayer that time may return tomorrow what it took from health yesterday, we have given our word on behalf of the generous hearts who have been running on the path of kindness for 30 years.