A MAN'S SORROW CUTS DEEPER

A time of parting...

Aziz Divit was a wise man. He lived his life with his heart in mind. It guided him through the most joyous moments in time, as well as those that required and begged for perseverence and sacrifice. He was an accomplished man. He was viewed by many as a man of business and by some of cold heart. But those who knew him close felt that heart of his in all that he had done.

Aziz supported his sons and loved them more than anything in the world. It took him a long time to build his beloved agency Fikri Harika into the grand agency it had become. Years of sacrifice and hard work filled with many sleepless nights and early mornings. The information he had received advising him that his agency fell into bankruptcy had saddened him, but he did not despair because of it. What saddened him was the fact that his beloved son Can fled the home he knew. He searched high and searched low for him. But he understood that if Can did not want to be found, no miracle on earth would have caused him to be found. And yet, his cousin Remide found just the way to bring Can back to Istanbul. And even though his return proved to be no easy task, and it was no easy feat for Can to overcome all sorrows, life found yet another way to try the virtue his character.

Aziz knew how much the return back to Istanbul cost Can. He was never a man of second chances. One strike and the person was out. Sanem changed it, but a broken heart seldom offered second chances. Perhaps, Aziz thought, his return signified the greatest second chance Can ever offered. And he offered that second chance to himself. And for that Aziz Bey would always feel respect toward his son. That he returned. That he stayed. That he chose to lay down his past sorrows and opened his heart again to Sanem. And in Sanem he found his love. Not once but twice. And maybe third time was the charm? For Can had found his partner. Aziz knew in his heart how much that mattered in life...

But the time had come for Aziz to step aside. From the agency, and from their sons' every day life. His sons stood firmly on the ground they walked on. Their heart was in the right place. Aziz knew they would make things work. One way or another, they would survive. He came to say his goodbyes to his sons and all those at the agency. His sons had no words for him after learning of his decision, but they understood. They felt his heart and the language it spoke with. And Aziz had advice for both of his sons. He told Emre to be good to Leyla. That he should never hurt her, for she was a good woman for him. He told Can to never let go of Sanem's hand. That hand had guided him, comforted him, loved him. He begged Can to never forget his words. He hoped he never would.

Leaving the agency Aziz said his goodbyes on his way out. He went to Leyla, and he went to Sanem. His daughters in his heart, regardless of their marital status. Leyla had Emre and his love in her heart, and Aziz felt that. But it was Sanem who lay deep in his heart. She was the one who opened Can's heart to the possibility of love. She opened his soul to doubtless trust. And she never gave up on Can and his love. She made Can believe in second chances. In life and in love. And for that, he would forever be grateful to Sanem.

Aziz saw Can's saddness written on his face. He felt being abandoned again, felt alone again. But there was something different in his eyes now. Peace, Aziz thought. Peace, and perhaps hope. But it was too dim to say it. Yet, it was there. Now was a time of parting. The steps that once took Aziz in the agency's direction, now took him away from it. But he would look forward to what lay before him. And he hoped there were still good days to be lived and good days to be had.