1993_10 Hye Sharzhoom Newspaper October 1993

              2—Opinion
Hye Sharzhoom
October 1993
"Armenian Character" Explored
By Lara Simonian
Staff Writer
Something has to be said about
the Armenian character, but that
something cannot be said in one
sentence.
Walking down the main street
in Yerevan, Soviet Armenia, I was
flooded with feelings of anxiety,
curiosity, happiness, and other
emotions that I couldn' t even begin
to describe.
With my black*baseball cap
nestled on my head, my sunglasses
on the rim of my nose, my Levi
jeans and neon T-shirt boldly standing out, I roamed around the main
road with fifteen other twelve-year-
old students from around the world.
That fine August day in 1987,
the Fresno Armenian Community
School of Fresno had chosen for
me to attend the international Armenian children's tour in my sweet
homeland of Armenia.
The natives looked upon us with
solemn faces, often smiling at us
while they tended to their booths
and tables of goods.
Children were always running
around us, playing and screaming,
lightening the heaviness of the
people's anxieties.
I looked around me as I walked.
Every knew we were tourists, but
no one came racing up to try to sell
us anything.
That surprised me greatly because the people in this city, and
everywhere else in this beautiful
country, were poor.
I glanced around and stared at
these people, their clothes old, their
faces worn, and their tired bodies
all barely hanging onto life. I felt
an uneasiness in my stomach.
As our group would walk by,
people would suddenly spark up
and throw these grand smiles at us.
As soon as we passed them, their
smiles faded slowly away.
My heart was so touched and
torn, I wanted to run up to each one
of them, embrace them, and hand
them money. I had plenty of money,
but I felt it would be an insult,
because these people were not beggars. As poor as they were, they
begged for nothing.
We continued to pass by several
booths that sold clothing, shoes,
toys, and other goods. I stopped for
a moment and looked around me.
The "tufa" stone houses farther
back on the main road seemed to be
crumbling down from the "wear
and tear" ofthe years gone by. Yet,
even the poor conditions of the
houses were masked over by the
people's earnest pride and care
for their homeland.
The air was clean, and fresh,
with a hint of sweet flowery scents.
As I continued my walk down the
main road, the people smiled at
me and some even waved vigorously when I said, "Parev (hello)."
Each booth, which was constructed out of a dark wood, some
rusty old nails, a single, small
table, and a lot of love, was only
about the size of a small apartment size bathroom.
The people's long and colorful
clothing draped like elegant robes
over their bodies, contrasted with
the sullen condition ofthe Armenian people. Yet, they still continued to smile cheerfully at every passerby.
I felt the warm rush in my
veins being tempered by the bittersweet agony of seeing my
people in their homeland. This
land was their home, their identity; my home, my identity.
When we finally came upon
the souvenir section of the main
street bazaar, our group began to
disperse, as each person rushed
off to a booth that had sparked an
interest.
At a small booth, I noticed an
New Editor Takes Reins
By Janice M. Caprelian
Staff Writer
It has not been customary to
print a story on the new editor of
Hye Sharzhoom. I felt there needed
to be a change because it is the
editor that runs the paper, makes all
the final decision, and puts up with
all the flack that can go on.
It is important that our readers
knows who she is and what she is
contributing to the Armenian youth
and community.
This year'si993 editor is Nina
Tamara Momjian. She is a senior
at CSU, Fresno with a double major in Speech Communications and
Journalism (with Public Relations
emphasis).
Born in Beirut, Lebanon in 1972,
Nina and her family left to come to
the United States in 1980. The
Momjian family now resides in
Northridge (Los Angeles County),
however, Nina has come to Fresno
State for higher education.
My interview with Nina was a
humbling experience that I enjoyed.
Even though she is a personal friend
of mine, I was able to understand
her drive and determination and
where it was coming from within
her.
When asked why she came to
Fresno State, she replied, "I wanted
to go somewhere different, to explore a new area, to experience life
independently, and although people
are astonished when I tell them this
... I like it here in Fresno."
Taking on the responsibility as
editor ofthe paper is a tremendous
responsibility. I asked her why she
wanted to take on the role of editor,
and with a deep breath she said,
"Being one of the few Armenian
journalism students, I wanted the
opportunity of utilizing my journalism background, so the Armenian students at F.S.U. can express
themselves productively through
the Hye Sharzhoom."
Times have changed and so has
the role of the Armenian woman
and what she can accomplish and
do. When asked how she saw herself as a young, Armenian woman
ofthe 90's, she replied, "I'm open
minded and have a very positive
outlook on life and as an Armenian
woman ofthe 90's, I know I come
off very different due to the challenges I place upon myself, and the
satisfaction I get within every new
experience." Nina sees herself in a
public relation position for a corporation she hopes will be professional and pleasure to work for. "I
thrive on a professional work environment," she said.
Nina is a very strong, spirited,
and determined young woman that
I see achieving any goal she sets for
herself. Through my interview with
Nina, I saw the fire in her eyes and
the intense drive in her voice that
showed me that this role as editor is
her new challenge to succeed and
do the best job she can.
Nina not only is a full-time student and editor ofthe paper, but she
is also active in the Fresno State
Forensics team, a writer for the
weekly campus newspaper, Insight, and she has interned for a
local television station, channel
47 (a CBS affiliate), and plans to
continue her experience at the station until she completes her degree.
Her ultimate role model is her
mother. She said her mother is
the only person she can call "Su-
perwomah." "Of all the teachers
I've had in my entire life: they
cannot be compared to my mother.
She has gone back to school to
finish her degree, while she continues teaching full-time at AGBU
Marie Manoogian to 4th grade
students. Words just can't explain the amount of respect and
admirition I have for my mom...
my ultimate role model!"
Being that Hye Sharzhoom is
the only student Armenian newspaper published in the United
States, and mailed all over the
world, I asked her what her goals
and intentions for the paper this
semester was, and she answered,
"To educate the Armenian community on the often misperceived
mentality of the modern Armenian student of the 90's. This
paper is my way of saying... this
is how we think."
elderly woman polishing some jewelry.
Being a young girl, I thought I
could never have enough jewelry, so
I headed in her direction.
On the table inside her booth were
various sorts of jewelry, dazzling
with glimmering rocks and crystals.
The gold, copper, and silver tones
dominated the rings and bracelets.
My eyes widened as my money began to itch in my pockets.
I picked up a unique copper bracelet that had sketches of wildlife outlined in on the surface. I turned it
around to the light at the tips of my
fingers and drifted off for a few seconds as I glared at its extraordinary
beauty.
Turning around to the ownerv it
became obvious I wanted to purchase the bracelet as soon as my
hand dove into my pocket. I looked
tenderly into the face of the old
woman and asked her how much the
bracelet was.
"Kanee ruble eh asega? (How
many rubles is this?)"
The old woman smiled at me
oddly in the same way that my mother
does, full of compassion and life.
Her hair was pulled back and tightly
bound under a torn, flowery scarf.
I smiled back at her, noting the
reverence of her soft brown eyes, her
white hair, and her most delicate
aging face.
Then I waited.
She slowly shook her head and
said it cost nothing.
Confused by her reply, I stared
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down at the table, looking for a
bracelet with a price tag on it.
I noticed a price tag on another
bracelet, and took a peek. I saw "10
rubles" printed in pencil, and decided to give her a ten dollar bill.
The bracelet was definately
worth it, she obviously could use it,
and she certainly deserved it.
Her ageless beauty made me
feel a warm tingling inside, as if I
was loved, and suddenly I wanted
to let her know how I was feeling.
I dug into my pocket, pulled out a
ten-dollar bill, and held it out to
her.
She looked straight at me, and
without even glancing down at the
money, shook her head. I edged it
toward her so she would take it, but
she only smiled at me and shook
her head.
"Aha, hadges, ar trameh. (Here,
please take the money)"
She only smiled at me and
nudged me away, telling me to go
on. t
I concluded the bracelet probably had not even been for sale in
the first place, and laid it back down
onto the table.
She quickly picked it up and
delicately laid it right back in my
hand.
Her old, frail hands momentarily
surrounded my fingers and gave it
a gentle squeeze.
Confused, I did not know what
to do. i hi    iiiim—mmmm
Please see Character, page 3
Hye Sharzhoom Staff
Editor: Nina Momjian
Asst. Editor: Khatchig Jingirian Jr.
Armenian Editor: Arlen Soghomoniants
Advertising: Tania Alikian
Khachig Jingirian Jr.
Staff Writers:
Hanne jfientzon
Janice M. Caprelian
MattCorce
Artag Darbinian
LaraVahe Demirjian
Advisers: barlow DerMugrdechian
Dr. Dickran Kouymjian
JS'irgitte Lund
Mike Pogosian
Aram Sarkissian
Lara Simonian
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