From the streets of Istanbul to the center of my heart — that’s the journey of my beloved Şanslı.
I first saw him in the summer of 2021. He was just a tiny black-and-white kitten, looking around helplessly on the street. Something in his eyes stopped me. I picked him up and brought him home, not knowing I was about to begin one of the deepest bonds of my life.
I called him Şanslı — it means “Lucky” in Turkish. But truly, I was the lucky one.
From the moment he entered my life, Şanslı was more than a cat. He became my son. He had a special energy, something I can’t explain — like he was sent to this world just for me. He was there for me during one of the hardest times of my life. He greeted me at the door, brushed his teeth with me, slept beside me, and watched the world go by from the window with me.
Because he had been malnourished on the streets, Şanslı struggled to learn how to drink water and eat properly. Eventually, his kidneys became damaged, and he became chronically ill. Still, he stayed cheerful, full of life. As he grew older, his condition worsened, and I found myself constantly at the vet — keeping him alive with injections and special food.
At night, I would cry while watching him sleep, checking to see if he was still breathing.
Şanslı had two surgeries. After the second one, his tiny body couldn’t cope, and the doctors had to keep him alive on a life support machine. They asked me the hardest question of my life: whether I wanted to keep him on the machine. I knew my son was in pain.
With tears streaming down my face, I made the decision to let him go.
When he passed, my cries echoed through the streets outside the clinic. My heart broke in a way I didn’t know was possible.
I brought him home one last time and buried him with my own hands. As I laid him to rest, I whispered, “We’ll see each other again one day.”
Now, he lives on in the sadness of my eyes and the pain in my heart.
But I also feel peace — because I gave Şanslı justice. I rescued him from the street and gave him love, safety, and dignity. And in his memory, I will keep fighting for animals everywhere — for cats, dogs, birds, and all the creatures trying to survive on our streets and in nature.
People ask me if I will find a new friend.
Yes. To keep Şanslı’s spirit alive, I will rescue another cat — one that looks just like him. Not to replace him. But to honour him. Because love like this doesn’t end. It continues.
— Ajda Ender, Istanbul
