 |
| Wedding Photo taken in Turkey |
I will always remember my grandmother would cry and mutter things in Turkish. I would ask why grandma was crying and would be told in hushed voices that she is remembering the genocide. Let us never forget and let us never be silenced.
The following is my mother's tribute -
....Born in
Aintab , Turkey
In 1914,
she and my father, Armen, were united in marriage. It was a big and fashionable wedding party
that lasted for three days.
Their first
child was a beautiful, bright and healthy little girl who gave them much joy.
She was not quite two years old when the Turkish government sent orders to have
the Turkish army go around and evacuate everyone in Aintab
from their homes. They must leave! Only whatever could be placed on a donkey’s
back was allowed to be removed from our house.
That was it! They were all
ordered to go in the direction of the desert.
And march they did
Her
trousseau of finest lace, satin and silk was not meant to be enjoyed by
her. One by one, each article was sold
for the price of something to eat. Her
gold coins, chains and rings also went the same way. Eventually, hunger became unbearable and
death took its grim toll. One by one,
God called their first born - then their second born - then their third born to
be by HIS side. They were never to feel
hunger again.
As time
went on, Pop was able to trade some carpenter work for a sewing machine. Mom learned how to use it and did dressmaking
and alterations, mainly for the Arabs along the way. They had a very dear companion whose name was
Yepros Shirejian. Yepros was good at
scouting around for mom, to sew for the people.
The Turkish
government found out that Pop was a good carpenter. They were in demand to help build army
barracks. He was taken away to the
army. His instructions were that he was
not to reveal he was an Armenian or he would be killed immediately.
At one
point, a friend of his in the army came to him and said, “You know, the army
has Armenian men working here and I overheard that the higher ranking officers
give orders to kill them all, TOMORROW.”
Needless to say, Pop took his life into his hands and managed to escape
during the night. Being that he was on
guard duty made his escape possible.
Now that he
was reunited with mom, the news came that “the war is over, return to your
homes.” Somehow they managed to return
to Aintab in 1918. She was on one wagon
returning to Aintab when another wagon
carrying her father was spotted. She could hardly contain her emotions. They
ran into each others’ arms. Her father
kissed her all over her face and her eyes and thanked God she was alive. Her face became covered with his tears. Tears of joy!
People became impatient and told them to get back on the wagon so they
could continue their journey.
By
September 1919, God saw fit that I should be born there. Armen and Horipsema (Helen) now had a fourth
child. Me! Starting life all over again, with no money,
yet with a stronger faith in God. What
would be my destiny? Pop went to the
American hospital where the Red Cross had canned milk for the patients. Pop had made friends with Dr. Shepherd, an
American Christian doctor. He begged him
for a prescription for some milk for me, or I too would die. This helped for the time being. But, again there was trouble. Disagreement
was brewing between the Turkish government and the French, English and
Germans. The bombs started off
again. My father took us to the safety
of a cave. He was standing guard to see
if it was safe enough to live - a bomb exploded and the shrapnel was embedded
in his eyes and face. He was taken to
the American hospital.
Again, they
were ordered to leave Aintab . By this time, families were terminated. No matter who you talked to, somebody was
killed or died of starvation or illness.
For those who left Aintab now, there
was no donkey to carry the burden. They
walked and walked - heading south of the border. Families became even more separated and
confused. They accepted wagon rides from
anyone going south. Pop had told Mom to
find his sister, Mariam, who lived in Aleppo ,
Syria
Fear
gripped her heart, tired - hungry - lonely - two little ones - where to go from
this cemetery - at night? She had the
sister-in-law’s address, but no one could tell her where it was. After much walking, swollen feet, and
complete exhaustion, she sat down for a goody cry. Suddenly, she felt a gentle hand on her
shoulder. “Girl, what are you doing
here?” When she looked up, it was
Mariam’s son. He assisted her in taking
her home where everyone greeted her with love and joy. She was given both food and rest. The next day Pop was at the door. He had been put into the Turkish army again
and kept having troubled dreams. They
kept telling him - “go, go, your son is dying.”
So, again he escaped from the Turkish army and found his way to his
sister’s house in Syria . They told him, “Horipsema is resting, Azadohi
is also asleep, but your baby son died during the night.” What a heartbreak!
 |
| Syria circa 1920 |
As time
went on, things looked better. Mom had
another baby, there was no one home - no telephones to call anyone. Pop did not know what to do. The baby died
right after birth. Another
heartbreak. My father vowed right then
and there that if God would spare my life, he would make a journey to Jerusalem and place a
lighted candle in my hand to say a prayer, and place it on a special container for
all candles.
Now his
wife, my mom was expecting another child. That is my brother, George. Yes,
faith can work miracles. He lived and
still is with us. Thank you God!
Now they
had two children to plan a future for.
What could be more important? Pop
heard that Italy
was the place some people were going for relocation. We went.
The government supplied a big public tent for the homeless Armenians.
Why wasn’t I afraid of the mice and rats that were all over the place? I’ll never know. There was a huge area for public washing of
laundry. To walk there was slippery and
dangerous. Pop decided to try to go to France .
 |
| Hripseme, Azadohi and Armen |
We arrived
in France
just in time for another child to be born.
A little girl. Pop left for
another “better place.” He had several
brothers in Philadelphia . Perhaps it would be better to move
there. Since my brother had a Jerusalem birthplace on
his passport - it was not available for him to go with us. So, Pop went alone. But instead of a delay of four weeks - it was
four years of waiting to come to America . In the meantime, baby Marie became sick. Mom took her to the hospital.
The story
here is a bit confusing. They told her
the baby was too sick and she must now take her home (that doesn’t sound like a
hospital). Mom had gone to get the
child, while my brother and I were holding onto her skirt. What really happened? They told her something she could not
understand. They told her to go
home. To this day - I cannot accept
anything that tells me she died. I don’t
feel it in my heart that she did. I
asked Mom if they allowed her to go see the baby, she said “NO.” They were very rude to her. Was this child given out for adoption? I pray she was. If so - she is alive. Dear God - whether she is with you or whether
she is being loved here on earth - watch over her!
 |
| Azadohi, Krikor & Hripseme in France 1925 |
 |
| Reunited in Philadelphia |
Finally, we
came to America . Mom and I came first; George followed us six
months later, at the age of five.
Azad ©1982
PostScript: My mother told me that she cried all the way on the boat to Ellis Island missing her brother.
