THE MAN WITH THE CRUTCH - THE TRUE STORY OF MY BROTHER RALF
The Life of a Young Man Who Believed in Karma
This is the second volume in the book series "Stations".
Frankfurt Airport, spring 1985
A young man with a crutch heads towards the green exit at Frankfurt customs. On his back, a large trekking rucksack with a Nepalese carpet strapped to it. In the outer pockets: four kilograms of hashish from Nepal.
Not exactly hand luggage.
For years, Ralf has been travelling back and forth between Germany, India and Nepal. A serious accident has permanently damaged his hip. The crutch will accompany him for the rest of his life.
It doesn’t make him particularly cautious, though.
In Jaipur, he lives in tiny hotel rooms, deals with jewellers, makes contacts in Nepal and repeatedly strolls through Frankfurt customs carrying considerably more than souvenirs.
Later, he starts his own company in Freiburg, develops machines and wins major clients. He achieves more than he once thought possible. But standing still has never been one of Ralf’s particular talents.
There is always another idea, another project, another opportunity. Until one of them seems bigger than anything he has ever dared to attempt.
When international business contacts suddenly open unexpected doors, Ralf seems closer to his greatest ambition than ever before.
Just when everything finally seems to be falling into place, life decides to rearrange the furniture once again.
In this personal book, Bernhard Christoph Lichtinger tells the true story of his brother Ralf: a man who believes in karma, travels halfway around the world on a crutch, smuggles hashish through Frankfurt customs, builds a successful company and stubbornly refuses to let an accident dictate his life.
It is a journey through India, Nepal and Germany, through freedom and family, success and failure, ambition and loss. Told with warmth, honesty and black humour. The kind of humour that can still make you laugh long after there is nothing left to laugh about.
Bernhard Christoph Lichtinger writes from lived experience – from setbacks, detours, new beginnings and encounters that need no embellishment. His stories take shape wherever real life leaves its mark.
If you haven’t read any of the books in the STATIONS series yet, you can start with any of the following titles. Each volume tells a self-contained story, but read in order, they reveal a much bigger story together.
Volume 1: WHAT SHE SAW – A TRUE STORY
Volume 2: THE MAN WITH THE CRUTCH
Volume 3: TRANSIT – THE LAST DAYS OF FREEDOM
Volume 4: DEPARTURE INTO THE UNKNOWN
VOLUME 5: IN THE TIGER CAGE – SOLITARY CONFINEMENT IN THE BASEMENT OF RUMMELSBURG
Volume 6: FRIDAY THE 13TH (IN PROGRESS)