News

Armenian Reporter: The Life of Nor Hadjn in words and images

28 Nov 2009

Continued from last week, these are stories and photographs from "Life in Nor Hadjn", a workshop conducted by Manana Youth Center with support from the Bay Area Friends of Armenia (bafa). Th e children of Manana and Nor Hadjn worked together to tell the story of life in Nor Hadjn from their own perspectives. The Manana Youth Center has two principal sponsors, the Paros Foundation and the Tufenkian Foundation.

Koharik tatig (grandma Koharik)
by Lilit Karapetyan, 15 (Manana), and Mariam Poghosyan, 12 (Nor Hadjn)

Recently we had gone to Amberd ruins. We were running around the ruins when we saw an old lady in sports clothes with a digital camera. She was trying to climb a rock; I approached her and offered my help. We got to know each other. She was an 83- year-old tourist from Germany. I thought she was of Armenian decent and had come to visit Armenia. She told me she was a tourist and that in Europe when you retire, every year you have enough retirement benefits to both travel and live comfortably.

Our conversation made me remember Koharik tatig. Even though Koharig tatig was 7 years younger than the German tourist, she looked much older, especially in her black dress and head scarf. Although she is retired, her social security benefits are not enough to get her the minimum nutrition, so she continues to work. Even with all her work and her social security income, still she needs to be fed at the soup kitchen in Nor Hadjn. She suggested that we talk to her in her home because she needed to take her granddaughter's food portion there, since her granddaughter is physically handicapped.

When I asked how many people were in her family, Koharig tatig said "I have three children, twelve grandchildren, and nine great grandchildren. My husband Arshavir died three years ago; he was 79."

I asked her how she had married Arshavir babi. She said, "Eh! I was nineteen years old.We got married in Sumgait. I used to work there in agriculture." Sumgait is in Azerbaijan.

I asked her when she had come to Nor Hadjn and she replied, "After living 20 years in Sumgait, in 1971 we relocated to Nor Hadjn. We both were jewelers and worked in the Shoghakn factory. For our good work they gave us an apartment."

She said, "My daughter works all day, and my granddaughter, Vartouhi, who is 23 years old, is handicapped."

She looked at her watch and said, "I think now I have to go. My work is waiting for me." She went to the balcony. She took a broom from a water pail and went out to where the streets of Nor Hadjn were waiting for her. I forgot to say that Koharik tatig is a street sweeper. She wakes up at 3 a.m. and sweeps the streets of Nor Hadjn.

When we were leaving she sighed and said, "Is this life . . . at this age? It looks as though I will die with this broom in my hands."


by Inna Aznauryan, 14, Manana Center

The five members of this family are a grandmother, a mother, a father, a sister, and my friend. The grandfather has died. The mother was working as a weaver until the shop closed. No one in the family is working right now.

"My mother needs to go get a new job," Mane said. Her sister's name is Gayane; she's 11 years old. Mane and Gayane fight a lot, like all sisters. They fight over the television, dresses, notebooks, and trivialities.

"When they ask me, Who do you like the most, your mother or your father? I answer, My grandmother," Mane said. Mane's grandmother's name is also Mane. She likes young Mane best and takes care of her. Mane often plays with her grandmother and spends a lot of time with her. For example, they play cards, "dourag," "four cards," etc.

Mane really wants to grow up and get married. One of her reasons is that no one plays with her enough. They say, "You're too small, go away." But on the other hand she has four bosom girlfriends, three of whom, Anna, Inessa, and Sara, she knows from her courtyard, and the fourth, Vartouhi, is from her village. They play with each other often. Mane wants to continue playing children's games with her friends and for that reason she wants to remain a kid.

Mane does not like to attend school. She wants to stop after eighth grade. She wants to become a beautician because she's seen how her mother makes herself up and wants to try it on other people. One time when she was little she took her mother's lipstick and drew all over her face. Her entire face had lipstick on it. When her father saw it, he got mad, but still Mane wants to be the world's best beautician.

Mane really wants a computer. She wants to sit in front of it and play and play. When she was young and watched the TV show "Power Rangers," she really wanted to be a power ranger. "One time I was fighting with my sister. She and I both wanted to be the red ranger," Mane said.

Mane is in the fourth grade. She really likes to take pictures. She also really likes her dolls, and likes playing with them. I think Mane is a very cheerful and friendly girl.


Manana student's photo chosen by the bbc

YEREVAN- Kristine Sargsyan, 15, had her photo selected by the bbc for their monthly themed photography contest. This month's theme was "railway station." Kristine said that she wanted to do something slightly different than the photos she'd seen others taking for the competition. She concentrated on more of a close-up shot. "In a photo, expressions are the most important thing," Kristine stated.

Working with her teacher, Albert Babelian, Kristine and her cousin, Vartan Hambardzunyan, went searching for their perfect shot. Vartan arranged himself on the railroad tracks for their picture but Kristine thought something was missing, so she set the camera for a 10-second delay and sat next to Vartan in the picture.

Kristine was in a German language class when she received the phone call about her picture being chosen, but her teacher forbade her answering her phone. After class she called back to hear the news. "I was so excited. I immediately called my mother and father," Kristine said. Kristine is a student of Yerevan's Manana Youth Center; she has attended Manana since 2006. Kristine has been in many photo exhibitions arranged by Manana; her photos were shown in "Under the Same Sun," about the architecture of Yerevan, as well as "Crisis and Hope."

Kristine's favorite activities at Manana are journalism, writing and photography. Photos from students of Manana have been selected by the bbc before, in 2006, for the theme "reflections." Kristine's picture is on display on the Russian page of the bbc website.