After the turmoil of Hurricane Sandy, Ahmed finally enrolls in high school and learns how to navigate academic life like other American teenagers. After switching schools, he is encouraged and supported to learn and perform music, and becomes curious about forming a band....
Hear both of Ahmed and Eric's experiences with Hurricane Sandy on the 11th anniversary of the most infamous storm in New York City's history.
"The ride from my town to the city hospital was a 6-7 hour ride..."
Ngawang Tseten is another example of just how amazing the human spirit can be. Overcoming a near fatal accident, Ngawang is lucky to be alive. Hear the thrilling story from our friend of the major event that would change his life's path, one that would eventually lead here with Ahmed.
“I think it was the biggest decision I ever made in my life”
Ahmed makes one last difficult life decision, and meets his first close friend Ngawang.
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"And as the plane took off, I was thinking - is this the last time I'm gonna be here?"
July 26, 2012.
Ahmed has made it. After much work and pleading, Ahmed finally gets to travel back to the U.S. at the age of 15, this time with his mother. Relive the story of the full trip from Iraq to New York and all the details in between.
The Ahmed: In Retrospect Podcast is back! Season 2 begins with a new episode on New Years Day 1/1 23! Included is a brief update on our whereabouts, what's in store for the new season and more!
"The government is not supportive of me.... (Living in Iraq) if you have a disability, or mentally ill, it's better for you to die..."
Sensing the chance to finally leave Iraq again, Ahmed describes the back and forth struggle getting the proper arrangements completed to return to the U.S. and get the life and care he desires.
An update on the podcast hiatus. Be back soon!
"I got knocked out. Really, really sharp pain and nobody was in the house...because of the pain I could not even scream."
An unexpected circumstance takes hold of Ahmed's body, leaving him with pain worse than anything he has previously felt.
Also, Happy New Year to all our listeners and thank you for tuning in this 2021. Thank you for your patience with this final episode of the year, we have many more in store for 2022!
"Dealing with that, you get turned down like that throughout your whole life, people just trying to break you - it's hard. Before I was blind and after I've been blind, it was difficult."
The teenage years of Ahmed's life begin tumultuously, dealing with more neglect from his family. But could there be a way out soon?...
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"...oh man, why is death following me everywhere I go?"
No stranger to life-threatening occurrences, Ahmed reveals a few scary incidents within a small period of time in his life that could have ended much, much worse.
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"...but now, I'm just useless."
Struggling with mistreatment at home, Ahmed refuses to be boxed in, to which he defiantly searches for a liberation from his torment and the freedom to live as he wants.
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"...out of anger, they'd say Saad died because of Ahmed. That was hard..."
Now back in Iraq after a year in the U.S., Ahmed realizes that home isn't what it used to be and must cope with being treated differently than before and the new hardships of everyday life away from New York.
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"...if I wasn't able to help another child, this whole thing would be worth it, just so that I could bring some sort of normalcy to this boy..."
Eric hosts a conversation with Elissa Montanti, founder of the Global Medical Relief Fund charity, in which she goes into detail about the origins of the organization, the trials and tribulations along the way and how she found and rescued Ahmed. Find out why she is dubbed "The Saint of Staten Island" in part one of a two-part interview.
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“Everything came at me at once, but, what was happening? I was happy…”
With a new start in the U.S., Ahmed goes to school, makes new friends and is given a taste of having a fun life again, the kind that every kid deserves.
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“…And one day, I dreamt (of him) and Saad said…”
Ahmed details the second traumatic event of his life, what ultimately would keep him in the U.S. on a regular basis, and the treachery that occurred throughout it all.
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“Are we in the clouds?…”
A miraculous rescue from an amazing woman brings Ahmed into a whole new world.
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"They had to remove my fingers from his stomach..."
Seventeen years ago, Ahmed would go through the unimaginable. His recollection and detail of that gruesome day are explored, as well as the aftermath and what inevitably saved him.
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"Good good Mister!..."
Ahmed delves into the early beginnings of his life while living in his home country of Iraq, detailing the experiences he remembers seeing with his eyes, from the happy times of school to the horrific scenes of war.
