Where there is a will there is a road

Amy Zahra shows up in her Tossa Blue Volkswagen Polo and reverses perfectly into a parking spot in front of her house in Marsaxlokk.

Beaming proudly she holds her key in her mouth as she leans over to get her crutches out of the back seat of her new car.

"My dad was my instructor, so I probably learnt to drive like a man," she said with a smile, when complimented on her precise manoeuvres.

Inside the house she plonks the crutches by the door and walks unaided to the living room, turning down any offer of help and relishing her new-found independence.

"When I'm going out on my own I still lug the crutches along. I'm still a bit unstable so they come in handy especially if the pavements are broken or uneven. Otherwise, they're a psychological crutch, knowing there's something to lean on," she said.

Sixteen months after contracting the deadly meningococcal septicaemia, Ms Zahra continues to defy doctor's predictions and moves a step further towards normality.

The illness may have robbed her of both her legs and her fingers, but nothing can steal the 22-year-old's determined spirit to survive.

"Last year, the doctor didn't think I would drive. His comments were: 'Will I be able to lay my head on the pillow and rest knowing Amy might kill someone tonight?'" she said.

Initially disillusioned by his remarks, Ms Zahra went straight to her mentor Pauline Cassar, a 45-year-old woman who went through an identical experience, for some advice.

"Pauline doesn't drive, but she sews and she assured me she could feel the pedal of the sewing machine," she said.

Heartened by her friend's comments, Ms Zahra flew to the UK with her family to have her driving capabilities assessed on a Fiat Punto and a Ford Focus that had been equipped with hand controls.

"I was thrilled yet anxious because I was driving on the hospital grounds and I was scared of running over a patient," she laughed.

Once she was behind the wheel there was no turning back and when they returned to Malta she started practising on her mother's car.

Soon she was ordering her very own Volkswagen. Her car had to be custom-made and since the hand controls (sponsored by Oiltanking Malta) are done in Italy and the actual car manufactured in Spain, she was told it would take six months. However, the staff at Continental Cars were very helpful and within three months it was in Malta.

Ms Zahra is rapidly rediscovering the joys of things in life many of us take for granted, and just last month she swam in the hospital pool for the first time since she emerged from hospital last year.

"I was a bit scared I'd drown, but I soon got the hang of it and even though my legs have to work doubly hard to keep me afloat I felt normal in the water," she said.

Once she finishes her university exams next week, Ms Zahra plans to start swimming more often and also catch up on her Pilates exercises.

So what's her next challenge?

"Graduating and walking up steps and along pavements unaided!"