Born in a mountain village in Bursa, Ahmet Softa mostly lived an ordinary life. Until he left his village to complete his mandatory military service, he worked as a shepherd for his father. When he was in military, he lost his father and returned to his village. Like any young man of his age, he wanted to marry the girl he loved but their engagement broke off. After all his five siblings married and left home, Softa decided that there was nothing left for him in the village and began building a shed for himself in the woods.For the last 30 years, 75 year old Softa has been living alone in the shed without any technology. He leaves his home once every week for Friday prayer and buys his weekly bread from the village after a two-hour walk.

Softa grows his own vegetables, legumes and fruit in his garden. During the summer months he prepares his fire wood for the winter.Explaining that he has no one to look after him, Softa said: "I have never married and my siblings do not care about me so I have nobody to share my life with. It is hard to live in the mountains but this is my life for the last 30 years."

The leader of the village nearest to Softa's shed, Abdullah Kaya, said that the villagers offered to build a house for Softa in the village but he declined.