Searching for traces on the soul and the mystery of Michał Karaś's disappearance
Photo: Family Archives
– Time does not heal wounds in all cases. The loved ones of missing people often still feel pain even after many years. It is permanent, sometimes it can accompany them until the end of their lives – says Aneta Bańkowska, psychologist from the ITAKA Foundation. Michał Karaś went missing when he was 16. He would have turned 40 this year. His loved ones still do not know what happened to him.
– There is not a day that goes by that we do not think about Michał – who he would be today, what he would be doing, whether he would have children. One wonders that maybe if he had not been allowed to go to that disco, if he had stayed at home, nothing would have happened and he would be with us today – says Bożena Martyna, sister of the missing Michał Karaś.
Despite the years that have passed, talking about him still stirs emotions. Her voice trembles, tears well up in her eyes.
Michał left home on August 19, 2000. A day later, on August 20, his sister realized that he had not returned that night. They searched for him in nearby villages and forests, combed a section of the bank of a nearby river, called police stations and hospitals. They even looked into sewage manholes. And nothing. Michał disappeared like a stone in water.
Today, exactly 24 years have passed since the day Bożena Martyna found an empty bed in her brother's room.
Michal KarasFamily archive
He danced with a blonde and disappeared
– For many families, the anniversary of a disappearance is a very difficult time. Memories come back, everything that happened at the time is recalled. A birthday can also be such a day, because then we naturally think about who the missing person would be today and what they were doing. Emotions and tears can appear, because the wound becomes much more vivid. Time does not heal wounds in all cases – says Aneta Bańkowska, psychologist, coordinator of the ITAKA Foundation support line. – The loved ones of missing people often still feel pain even after many years, it is permanent, sometimes it can accompany them for the rest of their lives.
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