"On the other hand . . . "

Grandpa Peter used to love academic discussions, especially on world history.  Whenever he asserted a historical fact, backed up by the Encyclopedia Brittanica (he was literally backed up by the Britannica as it was on the shelves right behind his chair), and someone would disagree with him with the words "On the other hand . . . ", Grandpa Peter would always laugh and reply, "On the other hand, he wore a glove!"

Slow Down!!!!

                                                                        Slow Down!!!! 

That's good advice for all of us, although these days, because of the present circumstances, we are almost forced to slow down . . . but many of us don't want any advice, nor do we care to slow down and, as it were, smell the roses . . . such was evidenced by the man driving down Church Street in Newton Corner at 8 AM yesterday morning, going 50 miles an hour in a 30 mile an hour residential zone. Marash Girl, following her father's example, shouted at him, "Slow down!"  After all, it was her neighborhood, and, at that, a neighborhood full of kids!!! 

The fellow slowed down just long enough to give old lady Marash Girl the finger!

Mr. Robin on a July Morning

Wear A Mask . . .

 Sign posted in front of Underwood Elementary School, Newton Corner!

                                                    "Wear a mask / You have one task . . .
                                                      Whether you're fast / whether you're slow . . .
                                                      Wear a mask / wherever you go . . .
                                                      Covid 19 can cause you strife . . .
                                                      Wear a mask and save a life!"

Summers, Watermelon and Cheese

Do all Armenians love watermelon?  All in Marash Girl's family certainly did.  The kids ate slices of watermelon, usually off the skin, walking around in the back yard, and spitting the seeds into the grass.  The grownups would have their watermelon removed from the skin, sliced into chunks.   Grandma Jennie often served watermelon with cheese (more often than not, home made cheese), or watermelon with salt for Marash Girl's father who loved his watermelon with salt!

And since most Armenians had known hunger, they  never wasted food.  Marash Girl vaguely remembers that folks used to peel off the green outer skin of the watermelon (leaving the white of the rind) and use the white of the rind to make candy.  Marash Girl's family did not.  Her father would grind the watermelon rind in his compost grinder and use the ground watermelon rinds to fertilize his magnificent vegetable garden.

Early Morning Visitor

                                           Photo by Marash Girl

                      This morning, Marash Girl was greeted by a visitor sitting in her front "garden"
                       at the base of her front porch!     Her visitor paused long enough for a photo!!!

Fried Eggplant à la Grandma Jennie

A quick and favorite summer's meal that Grandma Jennie (known as Mummie to Marash Girl) loved to prepare (and Marash Girl loved to eat) was Eggplant Goverma, known in English as Fried Eggplant, and probably originating in the Armenian community of Aintab.  Mummie would thinly slice a fresh, ripe eggplant (after washing the eggplant, of course) leaving the skin on and, just before placing the slices into hot oil to fry, she would dip the slices into a shallow bowl of freshly beaten eggs.  Dipping the egg-covered eggplant slices into the hot oil (backing away quickly because sometimes the hot oil splashes back at the cook), she would fry the eggplant, first on one side, then on the other, until both sides were lightly browned eggplant.  Then, carefully removing the eggplant slices onto a somewhat distanced platter (covered with a paper towel in order to drain off the excess oil), she would lightly salt the slices, and serve the fried slices of eggplant immediately, accompanied by slices of garden fresh tomatoes, to her eagerly awaiting family members.  Delish!!!

A Rose Garden?

Marash Boy recalls the following.

One day when my friend and classmate Armen S. and I were walking down the street in Harvard Square, we were able to view a young woman from behind, and he came out with this Persian phrase:   "She may look like a rose garden from the back, but when you see her from the front, she looks more like a vegetable garden." 

Happy Birthday, John Simmons!

Ծնունդդ շնորհավոր !!!! մենք սիրում ենք Քեզ!!!!

Composting à la Auntie Rose

A young survivor of the Genocide of the Armenian people (1914-1923), Auntie Rose loved her plants, and each day, carefully saved the peelings and scraps from the fruits and vegetables that she prepared for her breakfasts, lunches, and dinners with Uncle Harry.  After every meal, she would gather the peelings, cores, and leavings of those fruits and vegetables (few as there were), and carefully dig the leavings into the soil next to a plant in her flower garden.  Auntie Rose never wasted, as she knew, from childhood, what it was to go hungry. God rest her soul.

On a summer diet?

On a summer diet? Try water.  We water our plants, but do we water our bodies?  We need more water than ever these days, but often we confuse thirst for hunger and eat, or we are thirsty but we consume  sugary drinks, (or worse, cancer causing artificially sweetened drinks) to assuage our thirst.  Keep water in the refrigerator,  in a favorite mug or glass, so that whenever you open the refrigerator to see what’s there for you, you’ll see your favorite glass full of refreshing, clear, cold water.  

"Newton School Nurses Are Essential Employees!"

                                                                 Photo by Marash Girl

                         "Newton School Nurses Are Essential Employees!  Fair Contract Now!"

"I asked God for strength and courage . . . "

                       "I asked God for strength and courage.  He sent me my Armenian wife."

Remembering Arppie's Three Bean Salad!!!

As temperatures hit the 90's, Marash Girl remembers the wonderful summer days spent in Wilbraham, with all the family members, each bringing a special something for the picnic table.  Arppie's special something took no time at all to prepare, and yet it was everybody's favorite!!! She would simply open a can of black beans, a can of kidney beans, and a can of chick peas, making sure that the contents contained no preservatives or artificial ingredients . . . draining the cans and rinsing the beans well in cool fresh water.  She then added chopped fresh parsley, the juice of a freshly squeezed lemon, some olive oil, and, of course, salt, pepper, and a dash of Armenian red pepper.  There you have it!!! Her secret?  Preparing the salad the day before the picnic, and allowing it to marinate in the refrigerator for 12 to 24 hours!!!

                            
                                      We miss you, Arppie!!!  

N.B.  Could she have learned to make this salad from her good friend, Esther Hawsley?

Grandpa Peter and Little Katie

Grandpa Peter loved Katie, his first grandchild, very much.  Every time she would be with him in Newton, Massachusetts, (all the way from Los Angeles, California), whether she was an infant or a grown woman, he would sing to her (to the tune of 'Daisy, Daisy Give me your answer true . . . I'm half crazy all for the love of you.')

"Katie, Katie, give me your answer true . . . I'm half crazy all for the love you!!!"  Katie loved his singing, as off key as it was, and would grin from ear to ear.

Sadly, Katie passed away at a very young age, after she had achieved her MD and law degree, and Grandpa Peter has passed away.  How Marash Girl loved them.  How Marash Girl misses them!!!

Gooseneck Flowers

                                                        Marash Girl's Loosestrife                    Photo by Marash Girl

Gooseneck Flowers, better known as Loosestrife (ysimachia clethroides), are a blessing for folks who need plants to fill in their gardens, plants that do not need heavy care or watering.  Marash Girl had lots of room in her front garden for such plants.  Marash Girl's friend Helene provided the solution.
She gifted Marash Girl only a few Loosestrife plants, Loosestrife which has now filled all of the empty spots in Marash Girl's front garden (and more) with beautiful white flowers, flowers that she can share with her neighbors as they walk by on a beautiful summer's day.

"There Is No God. Prove."

"There Is No God.  Prove."  So began the otherwise blank final exam in Humanities Five, Introduction to Philosophy.  "Thank you, God," grinned Marash Girl as she began, hammer and tong, or should I say, pen and paper, to attack the question.  Her answer?  Her answer has been written throughout the Bible, throughout many a hymnal.  God exists.  She wrote two pages, asserting her belief, and the reasons for her belief, and . . . the final grades were posted.  She was the only student in the class to receive an "A" on the exam.  "Why was that?" everyone asked.  Do you know the answer, dear reader?

N.B.  Marash Girl may have written about this experience in past blogposts, but suffer her one more time to remember the graciousness of her Professor Aiken at Harvard University.

Remembering Armen Sahakian

Photo from Internet

Marash Girl remembers the first day she learned of you, Armen.  Her good friend Judith told her about a very handsome young Armenian man who was studying in the Graduate School at Harvard University, living in a private apartment complex on Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge. You were a roommate of Judith's friend (although Marash Girl doesn't remember the friend's name).  Judith said she wanted me to meet you because you were a good-looking, intelligent young Armenian man, and therefore was inviting you and her friend to the Jolly-Up -- a dance/mixer for young Radcliffe women to meet young Harvard men.

Judith introduced us.  You were so handsome with dark, wavy hair.  You asked me to dance, and I accepted, and as we danced, I learned that you were Tashnak.  Naive as I was in those days, I remember saying to you, "I'm so sorry, Armen, but I won't be able to date you because you're Tashnak." . . . not that you had given me any hint that you would ever want to invite me out on a date.

Years later, I learned that you had been very good friends with my husband, Levon.  And still later, you and your family visited us at our summer cabin in Wilbraham, Massachusetts, and at Mt. Tom Greenhouse in Holyoke, Massachusetts, and more recently, you came to Boston on business and visited our family in Newton, Massachusetts.  I think that was the last time we were together.  It was then that I took you to visit the editors of the Armenian Weekly and the Armenian Mirror Spectator.  I knew they would be interested in writing about your visit to the United States, and they were.

                                                                                                   Photo by Marash Girl                                                                                            

Asdvadz kezi louysavoreh, Armen Sahakian.

Armen . . . May the Lord our God welcome you into His Kingdom.

STORMING THE BASTILLE: BASTILLE DAY ON WILBRAHAM MOUNTAIN

"The French National Day is the anniversary of Storming of the Bastille on 14 July 1789, a turning point of the French Revolution, as well as the Fête de la Fédération which celebrated the unity of the French people on 14 July 1790." (From the Internet)

Karoun: I love the brie cheese memories, so sweet!  Here's what I remember of the theatrics, I think I was really young because I was watching. Uncle George and a woman (who was only there that time, I don't remember who she was, but I think she was a friend of Mum's not of Uncle George) were sitting under the bastille -- large sticks laid against the tree that's at the corner of the woods closest to the cabin porch, where the flags are raised. They were sharing bits of french bread (that was supposed to be stale). Then all of you guys came running at the bastille yelling and screaming and knocked the sticks down and freed them. I think it was a little scary for me lolll.

Lorig: That's right. We leaned a bunch of big sticks against the tree and then we knocked them down.

I think it was probably one of Uncle George's girlfriends, but I am sure she never came back again after that. LOL

I think we did it a few times. One time I think Uncle George got knocked on the head with one of the large sticks. I remember him being a really good sport about it. I felt really bad. Because I am pretty sure I organized the entire dramatic scene. It is the kind of thing I would have done. :)

Karoun:  I don't remember Uncle George getting hit! You probably did direct it. I have vague fond memories of being in your "plays" with the cabin's porch as the stage.

Deron: I recall hanging the French flag next to the American flag. I also recall NOT wanting the Brie cheese.

Nisha:  I think Lorig and I liked the Brie but we kept leaving bits of the skin around because we only liked the creamy inside part 😄.  Of course, Papa would say “but that’s the best part!” And also tell us not to leave the skin bits on the cheese board 😂.  And practicing whatever French we could remember!

Marash Girl:  Juillet Quatorze was the only day we took the Armenian flag down to hang the French flag next to the American Flag!

Lee Powell, Cows, and Thunder & Lightning on Wilbraham Mountain

This photo (borrowed from the internet) brought to mind Wilbraham neighbor Lee Powell's personal memory of having narrowly escaped death by lightning on her farm as she ran for cover, her cows hit by lightning falling behind her  . . .  and the day Marash Boy and Marash Girl just made it back from their run along Ridge Road to their mountain cabin, as furious bolts of lightning struck behind them   . . . one of the most ferocious thunder and lightning storms that the couple had ever encountered on Wilbraham Mountain.  The experience, of course, was worsened by having heard Lee Powell's memory!  Are you still up there on Wilbraham Mountain, Lee Powell?

"çok iyi ama bir daha yapma!"

"çok iyi ama bir daha yapma . . ." said Levon's Grandmother Turvant Sanjian to his mother Azniv after consuming a meal that she did not care for. (Both Marash Boy's father, mother and grandmothers were born in Marash. . . )  Marash Girl thinks his grandmother is the person from whom Marash Boy inherited his political prowess!!!!

n.b.  Translation of Armeno-Turkish quotation above:  "It's very good but don't make it again."

Love Conquereth All

    

     Lawn sign in Newton Corner . . . words are not needed . . . 

"Fear not!" saith the Lord, Shakespeare, Roosevelt, Grandpa Peter, and Karoun

in the Book of Isaiah, Chapter 41, Verse10, God is quoted as saying, "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God . . ."
William Shakespeare in his 1599 play, Julius Caesar. Act II, Scene 2, Shakespeare's original lines, “Cowards die many times before their deaths; The valiant never taste of death but once,” are often quoted as follows: “A coward dies many times, a hero dies but once.”  Peter Bilezikian often admonished, "Cowards die many times, brave men die but once!"  And more contemporaneously, Marash Girl's Karoun admonishes, "You attract what you fear!!!"

Marash Girl believes that the above quotations could certainly apply to the present day pandemic!

"Malın gibi ye!"

Armenians from Marash (today's Kahramanmaraş) and Aintab (Today's Gaziaintab) would often use irony when they suggested, "Malın gibi ye!"

"Malın gibi ye!" . . . "Eat it as if it were your own . . . ," suggesting that the person being addressed was very selfish and barely shared anything,  especially food, if you were to visit them on a Sunday afternoon .  . . or any time!!!

Uncle Jack Cotton and the Watermelon Seed

Uncle Jack Cotton, a large and boisterously funny man, was married to Auntie Mary, a sweet, petite lady who went to church with us every Sunday.  Uncle Jack went to a different church and got a ride to that church in a different car.  But every Sunday, Auntie Mary and Uncle Jack would join Marash Girl and her family for Sunday dinner.  The children were fascinated with Uncle Jack because they had never seen anyone with such a large "tummy".    One day they asked their Uncle Jack why his tummy was as big as a watermelon.  His answer?  "I swallowed a watermelon seed!"

Ever after that day, whenever the children ate watermelon, they did so with the fear that one day, unbeknownst to them, they would swallow a watermelon seed and end up with a tummy as large as their Uncle Jack's!

Big Brother Bob Emery and the Lowell Avenue Kids

 Big Brother's photo from the internet

One of our favorite TV shows as kids (television had just come into our homes) was Big Brother Bob Emery's FAMILY FUN!  And even more fun was the fact that Big Brother Bob Emery lived in Newton, Massachusetts, within a 10 minute bike ride from our houses on Lowell Avenue in Newtonville!!!  One summer's day, we kids decided to take advantage of that fact and all of us, cousins and young neighbors, gathered and headed to Newton Highlands in a cavalcade of bikes.  We had an idea: we wanted to be on Big Brother's television show and we had an exciting plan for the show, "Family Fun".  We kids used to make our own puppets, fashioning the heads with paper mâché which we painted when dry, and creating the outfits from roughly sewn cloth cut from our outgrown clothing.   We would then put on puppet shows of our own creation.  The puppet shows themselves were not of interest to Big Brother, but he loved the idea of three families gathering to create the puppets used for the kids' puppet shows.  And so it was.  Our three families, moms included, appeared on his show, all lined up from the beginning of the process. . . clipping newspaper into small bits to be used in creating the heads of the puppets with home-made paste from flour and water,  drying the heads, painting the dried heads of the puppets,  and cutting and fashioning the puppet clothing from our no longer wearable hand-me-downs!  The show was a big success and we kids never got over the fact that we had been on Big Brother Bob Emery's FAMILY FUN television program for all to see!

A New Tree on Maple Avenue?

This morning, Marash Girl spoke at some length with Mark Welch, Newton’s Deputy Commissioner of Parks, Recreation, and Culture, regarding the planting of a Maple Tree on Maple Avenue, a tree to replace the tree that was taken down yesterday.

Deputy Commissioner Welch assured Marash Girl by telephone that Newton will “schedule a planting of a new tree in the fall planting season which will typically be in November 2020".  

He said that the City of Newton will be asking us all . . .  neighbors to the new tree on Maple Avenue . . .  to water the tree once a week from Patriot’s Day and Columbus Day for two years.

Please email Newton’s Deputy Commissioner of Parks, Recreation and Culture Mark Welch  at the following email address —   MWelch@newtonma.gov — to thank him for his attention to this matter . . . for caring about our trees on Maple Avenue in Newton Corner!!!

Marash Girl Grieves The Passing of the 100 Year Old Maple Tree on Maple Avenue

                                                                 Photo by Grieving Marash Girl

x

Marash Girl Meets Eleanor Roosevelt at Harvard University, August 11, 1960

Working for Henry Kissinger at the Harvard International Seminar during  vacations from her college studies, Marash Girl was honored to make the acquaintance of Eleanor Roosevelt who had been invited to speak to the Seminar participants.  Marash Girl was charged with helping Eleanor Roosevelt become acclimated to Harvard University and Harvard Square.  "Mrs. Roosevelt had traditionally visited the members of the International Seminar each summer, meeting in informal session and making brief remarks, reported the Harvard Crimson of August 11, 1960," though that was not the case for the next few summers that Marash Girl was on the staff.  The summer of 1960 was the only summer  that Eleanor Roosevelt visited during the four summers that Marash Girl worked for Henry Kissinger at the Harvard International Seminar. 

From the internet comes the following. 

Mrs. Roosevelt Speaks

NO WRITER ATTRIBUTED

August 11, 1960

Eleanor Roosevelt made a quick visit to the University last week unnoticed by almost every student. Speaking informally to 48 members of the International Seminar. Mrs. Roosevelt commented on "The Values of Democracy." Her 40-minute speech, followed by a brief question-and-answer session, was all off the record. Boston newspapers, bearing of her visit, attempted to cover the closed seminar session. Only the Boston Globe succeeded in interviewing the former first lady, as she indicated she would "probably" make a few speeches on behalf of Democratic nominee Senator John F. Kennedy '40.

n.b. Eleanor Roosevelt passed away on November 7, 1962.

Fourth of July in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts

Shirley Tashjian, God rest her soul, was the heart of the Fourth of July in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts.  As every year, the Fourth of July Parade paraded directly by her house, she would celebrate the occasion, setting out food and drink for all her friends and the random passerby who caught her eye!!! All Marash Girl's children loved the Fourth of July Parade in East Longmeadow, as did all kids!  Not only was it colorful and musical with popular tunes played by bands from the many towns in and about East Longmeadow, but most of the folks marching in the parade carried pocketfuls of candy that they would toss to the kids that had gathered along the side of the parade route to cheer the paraders on.    Deron remembers numerous local politicians marching in the parade, leaving the parade for a moment to walk over and shake hands with Marash Boy who, at that time, was employed by Gralia Construction in East Longmeadow.  The politicians (Brian Lees, Richie Neal, and the last two or three Mayors of Springfield, Massachusetts) would greet Marash Boy by name. leaving the parade for a moment to walk over to the side of the road and shake Marash Boy's hand!!!

But that was years ago.  Marash Girl wonders if the Fourth of July is still the same without Shirley Tashjian in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts.

Coffee on the Front Porch

 Coffee on the Front Porch - "Vote For More Women!"                    
      Photo by Marash Girl

l

                   

"Don't Let Old Age In The Door!"

Advice from Peter Bilezikian:  "Don't Let Old Age In The Door!"

"When all else fails, go shopping!"

"When all else fails, go shopping!" . . . or so suggested a well-known "shrink" to his patient who was feeling down. And guess what!  The patient reported to Marash Girl that the shrink's  suggestion worked!  Between the change of venue, the exercise, the interaction with other folks, and the excitement of possibly finding a "bargain", her problems took a back seat to the "adventure" of the moment.  Unfortunately, in this day and age, neither the change of venue nor the exercise play into the solution. . . Marash Girl wonders what the shrinks are suggesting today . . .