There are some moments in your life that no matter how many years past, you'll remember them like it was yesterday. I have a couple of those moments. Like when my cousin gave birth to her first child, when i got my period for the first time, how i found out that Michael Jackson had died etc.
March 25 2017
It's saturday morning, i'm laying in my bed, half awake and half asleep when my phone starts to ring. I always have my phone under my pillow (even though i am paranoid that it will blow up) so i look at the screen and it says "Dad". I'm tired so i don't answer thinking that i will call him in a couple of hours. But then all kind of thoughts starts to spining around in my head. "Why is he calling me like 8 in the morning on a saturday?", "Has something happened?". After five minutes of constant batteling with my thoughts i decided to call my dad back.
"Hi dad, what's going on?"
"Hi, i'm in the airport, i'm flying to Turkey in a couple of hours"
So i'm thinking a million toughts once again "why is he on his way to turkey?" , "we are all going there in july, why is he going now" , "something must have happened"
"Okay, how come?"
"We lost your cousin" my dad replies.
In that moment it felt like the whole world just stopped. I didn't understand what he meant with "we have lost your cousin". Was she lost? Where could she be?
He's telling me that she's fallen from the balcony. I think he goes on for about 2-3 minutes. I am chocked and i can't really take in everything that he has just told me so i interrupt him and says
"Dad what do you mean? Is she dead? Or is she like in the ICU? Is there still a chance that she will survive?"
"No, she is dead"
The second i hear my father say those three little words - that are not so small after all - i immediately start to cry. I needed to hear him say it out loud.
She was only 25 years old when she got an epileptic seizure on the balcony and fell over. She died immediately at the scene.
I think what i am trying to say is that don't take anything or anyone for granted. As a young and healthy person you think you are invincible, you never really think about being sick. You take your health for granted. I know this is a cliché but really live your life to the fullest. Tell the people you love that you love them because one day it may be to late.
Me, my cousin and my brother in my fathers hometown Sivrihisar Turkey.