About the Book

Yasemin, a young Muslim Turkish girl, falls in love with a handsome American named Frank in Ankara, Turkey. After they marry and have two children, Yasemin joins her husband working at the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya.

She can sense that her lifelong dreams are finally within reach. But external forces were set in motion to derail her plans - terrorists bombed the American Embassy in Nairobi on August 7th, 1998, while she and her husband are inside.

Frank is critically injured and flown to Germany for hospitalization. Yasemin follows with her family, physically unharmed but severely suffering from the effects of PTSD. It is then that she is confirmed pregnant with their third child, with Frank on death’s doorsteps.

What follows is a tale of grief and struggle, but also of tremendous joy. From her diagnosis and struggle with PTSD treatments to Frank’s physical therapy and abandonment by the State Department, Yasemin’s story winds between betrayal and renewal as she searches for meaning in her new circumstances, and ultimately turns to God.

Author Biography

Yasemin was born in Ankara, Turkey, where she spent her formative years with her family and met her husband, Frank. She has a degree in urban planning. Yasemin volunteers as a leader in a Christian organization, which leads women from all backgrounds to God. Yasemin and Frank have three children together and reside in the southern United States.

 

Author Biography

Yasemin was born in Ankara, Turkey, where she spent her formative years with her family and met her husband, Frank. She has a degree in urban planning. Yasemin volunteers as a leader in a Christian organization, which leads women from all backgrounds to God. Yasemin and Frank have three children together and reside in the southern United States.

 

Author's Motivation

What prompted me to write my story? No matter how I look at my life and my experiences since August 7, 1998, I see an incredible journey of triumph over adversity that reflects the glory of God. My experience with God was far more powerful than that fateful explosion. It took only one sick person to ignite a truck full of explosives in a building, causing a tragedy that has affected the people there and all their families, friends, and nations to this day. It’s impossible to restore the many shattered lives to where they were before. It’s not a simple matter of getting back on track and of moving forward.

The consequences of this experience were far-reaching and permanent, but God is greater than those. I hope my story provides at least a modicum of inspiration and comfort to those affected by terrorism and PTSD from any source.

Excerpts From My Book

This wasn’t fair; everything we’d worked so hard for was ripped away in seconds. Best-case scenario, Frank will be horribly scarred and wounded for life. Worst-case scenario, Frank will die. I don’t want to think about either possibility.

My symptoms returned with a vengeance, as if punishing me for forcing their dormancy. Phantoms followed me, asleep or awake. Cockroaches crawled on the walls. Shadows trailed me in the silence.

Excerpts From My Book

This wasn’t fair; everything we’d worked so hard for was ripped away in seconds. Best-case scenario, Frank will be horribly scarred and wounded for life. Worst-case scenario, Frank will die. I don’t want to think about either possibility.

My symptoms returned with a vengeance, as if punishing me for forcing their dormancy. Phantoms followed me, asleep or awake. Cockroaches crawled on the walls. Shadows trailed me in the silence.

Appreciation

 

A warm hello and thank you to women who inspired me in the past, encourage and strengthen me today, and who will do even greater things in the future.