[LETTERS TO THE EDITOR]Senegalese worker’s plight is reminder of harsh world

According to a Nov. 23 article, a Senegalese man with brain cancer was going through a checkpoint in Incheon International Airport in a wheelchair last month when he suddenly became unconscious and slid from his wheelchair. This man was revealed to be Mr. Abdoulaye Fall.
Mr. Fall went to the airport to return to his family in Senegal. He had worked illegally in factories to send money to his young brothers, who needed financial support. Through this article, I have again realized, at the age of 15, that the world of reality is much stronger than the world of emotions.
I have realized that a world filled with happiness is a dream that will never be fulfilled. I have started to understand my math teacher’s phrase, “Where there is a first place in a race, there is always a second place.”
Mr. Fall was not allowed to board the airplane. The unconsciousness was soon revealed to be the result of a brain tumor. It was stated by doctors that “pressure on his brain would increase with a rise in altitude,” according to the article.
This rejection in the airport would have given Mr. Fall cause for great despair. He would experience internal pain by realizing that while he was in the hospital, his family would be waiting desperately to meet their eldest brother. Every night would seem like a nightmare to Mr. Fall. His heart was desperate for the love of his family.
Mr. Fall’s decision seemed admirable to me. He has insisted that he would be willing to risk death to meet his family. It stated in this article that he wanted to face death in his homeland.
The will of Mr. Fall was accepted under one circumstance, that he have a doctor with him. I mean, what has this world become? All the man asked for was his very own death in his very own land where he was born, and why not? Not enough money.
Although I have lived only 15 years, I can strongly assert that reality is very sad. Technology has developed, but it cannot fulfill a wish for a pleasant death.

by Daniel Cheong