Մորմոքող Հողերու Կանչը

2 comments

1. Introspective, Not Critical

   If I were to characterize this upcoming presentation, it would say it is a "de'ja vu all over again".

   During the past two decades I have read articles, attended public presentations, have seen videos, and read books with sentimental titles such as "The Stones Are Crying Out" (A. Meymarian), "Is This Your House or Mine?" (Z.Khanjian) and now another public presentation in Armenia Capital U.S.A., Glendale. I read some of Minas' travel reports while he was still on his journey. I wonder now if they are the prelude for another book with another sentimental title.

   I often ask myself "are we bolstering Turkish tourism?" Do we need to have so many "exploratory" sight seeing in Turkey? I admit there is something innate that compels us to do so and to hear about it and be moved. Do we need to heed that innate call and for how long and at what cost in time and money? I admit that more likely than not I probably will attend and be moved again. I am being more introspective than critical.

   There is a lot in our Armenian Diaspora reality that may not move me by the slightest but I know I should know; to begin with, here in the United States. Just imagine how many Armenian communities, small and not so small, we cross while driving on the east-west Interstate 80 or on the north-south Interstate 75, let alone on the highways of America.

   Each Armenian community is becoming an island. Although the Internet has facilitated communication, real time ties among these communities are fast disappearing to the detriment of opportunities where our sons and daughters can meet and get to know each for self-evident reasons.

   Stones carved in Armenian in Turkey, a pat by a Turk or Kurd on the back of a young Armenian tourist, a Turkified or Kurdified Armenian seem to move us more and fire our imagination more than similar realities of our current communities.

   It may be time to for us to reassess our priorities,  find out and connect more with our living reality.
    

2. Garabed’s Comments

   I carefully read Garabed's comments. I respect his thoughts, and he does have a point. I would like to state that my presentation will not be a sentimental speech, nor contemplation on a "paradise lost." I will not just simply enumerate the places I visited: just the opposite. I will expound on certain issues we have to contemplate for the sake of taking positive actions for a better future. Furthermore, I intend to publish my book in Turkish and in English, because it is enriched with a great deal of information on the history of the Armenian people and its heroic past. I think that my readers, especially the younger generation of Armenians and Turks, will greatly benefit from the information therein. The main focus of my presentation, and ultimately my book, will be on the preservation of our communities, the role of the new generation of Armenians, in the Diaspora and the Motherland, and, of course, the future of Armenia.

   Minas Kojayan

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