{"id":58331,"date":"2026-04-07T17:12:56","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T14:12:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sgdd.org.tr\/who-said-i-was-sick-i-already-feel-better\/"},"modified":"2026-04-07T17:18:23","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T14:18:23","slug":"who-said-i-was-sick-i-already-feel-better","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sgdd.org.tr\/en\/who-said-i-was-sick-i-already-feel-better\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cWho Said I was Sick? I Already Feel Better\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cA foreign country, a language I didn\u2019t know, and people I wasn\u2019t familiar with\u2026 These were my three greatest worries when I first arrived in T\u00fcrkiye.\u201d<\/p>\n\n

It all began amidst those worries, during the days she was trying to hold on to a new life with her three children.<\/p>\n\n

Meryem was 30 years old when she came to T\u00fckiye from Syria in 2013. Today, she is 43. When she first came to T\u00fcrkiye with her husband and three children, they were a family who held tightly on to one another and was trying to rebuild their life together. <\/p>\n\n

Their first stop was Malatya. Since that day, her husband worked in many different jobs to support the family. But their greatest challenge was the language. Even expressing yourself in a new country was a challenge in itself. <\/p>\n\n

Their daughter Rim, who is now 21, recalls those days with a smile: \u201cWhile my parents were trying to learn Turkish, my brother and I had already learned it quickly at school. Sometimes we even spoke in Turkish at home so no one would understand\u2026 as if we had a secret language. Back in those days, Turkish wasn\u2019t just a language, it was like our own little world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n

Turkish started as a small secret between them. Over time, it became a key that opened the doors to this new life. A new country, a new language, and a new life\u2026 They all gradually gave way to habits, bonds that were established, and moments shared together. <\/p>\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n

A Center, A Turning Point<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n

One of the most important turning points in Meryem\u2019s life began on a day when she was seeking support for her youngest son, \u00d6mer. That day, she came across the Ankara Community Center of the Association for Social Development and Aid Mobilization (ASAM). What started as a simple visit for counseling soon became one of the most important parts of her life. <\/p>\n\n

\u201cAs I kept visiting the center, I started spending more time there. I built a new life for myself thanks to the staff and the friends I met there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n

During her first year at the center, she was invited to the 23 April Children\u2019s Festival. Together with Rim, they joined this festival that brought thousands of children together. That day left a lasting impression on them and became one of those moments they keep remembering again and again. <\/p>\n\n

\u201cI was impressed that there was a festival celebrated just for children\u201d, Meryem recalls. Rim still remembers that day and adds, \u201cI played with all the toys there that day so many times. I still find it hard to express the happiness I felt.\u201d<\/p>\n\n

The center didn\u2019t just create new spaces for Rim, it also provided an environment where she could express herself better. After coming across ASAM, her life not only changed, but also flourished. She joined the children\u2019s choir and regularly participated in activities every week. She took guitar and rhythm lessons from conservatory tutors. \u201cSinging makes me so happy; it\u2019s then that I can best express myself\u201d, she says. <\/p>\n\n

Over time, this journey evolved into something completely different for Meryem. While she used to be a beneficiary receiving support, she became an activity facilitator and interpreter for a certain period at ASAM. She conveys, \u201cBeing a part of a life where I could support others, at a place where I once received support, was an indescribable joy for me.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

Today, the Ankara Community Center is more than just a center, it is a place remembered with trust in the family\u2019s life.<\/p>\n\n

Meryem sees this most clearly in her youngest son, Muhammed: \u201cWhen he\u2019s sick, he doesn\u2019t want to do anything. But the next day, when he hears there\u2019s an activity at the center, he carefully chooses his clothes and says, \u2018who said I was sick? I already feel better.\u2019 Seeing his energy is worth everything.\u201d<\/p>\n\n

Once a journey she set off in the midst of uncertainties, with the three worries in her heart, has now given way to completely different feelings. Looking back on those days, Meryem explains the entire change she experienced in three words: <\/p>\n\n

“Trust, friendship, and joy.”<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Meryem\u2019s journey from worry to trust<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":58330,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"wds_primary_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[367],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-58331","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-human-stories"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgdd.org.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58331","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgdd.org.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgdd.org.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgdd.org.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgdd.org.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58331"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sgdd.org.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58331\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":58333,"href":"https:\/\/sgdd.org.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58331\/revisions\/58333"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgdd.org.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58330"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgdd.org.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58331"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgdd.org.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58331"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgdd.org.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58331"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}