Ellen's thoughts and reflections

Hello all! I'm posting from Lauren's email because ellen.begley@yahoo.com apparently doesn't translate to Armenian and I'm locked out of my email for the time being. No big deal! We're excited here!

With heavy eyelids and mounted anticipation we arrived at our home for the next two weeks this afternoon! Words cannot express how lucky I feel to be able to travel to Warsaw, Yerevan and now Vanadzor and experience the whirlwind of both heart-wrenching and exciting events our team has encountered in the last few days. Though geographically stark in their contrasts, Poland and Armenia has revealed shockingly similar histories. Transitioning from our very comfortable tourist experience in Warsaw to our eye-opening surroundings in Vanadzor is somewhat eased by observing their respective histories and people.

In our interactions with the very outgoing and friendly Polish people, we have been able to see a similar resiliency as easily observed in the Armenian people. Despite the fairly disheartening greeting from the Armenian Visa officers, our new Armenian friends, Gohar and Melik, have been nothing but warm, funny and supportive. Again, how did I get so lucky? These attitudes hardly reflect a history of difficulty in genocide and independence after Soviet rule.

After the incredibly moving and sickening experience Auschwitz provided, I hardly felt prepared to visit the Armenian genocide memorial today. However, I was able to see the growth and again, resiliency, of a people who have had countless opportunities for retalliation and disillusionment. People never cease to amaze me- in both horrible and wonderful ways.

Today we were also able to learn and visit the institute holding all of Armenia's historical manuscripts bearing incredible works from the manuscript of the first Armenian alphabet to a map by Ptolemy himself! What was most amazing was the beautiful artwork that accompanied every page of writing. Every stroke of the pen appeared intentional and revealed religious works giving continuous praise to God. Absolutely brilliant I tell you! The historical manuscripts were adorned with the most ornate, intricate, colorful and meaningful art I've ever seen! Friends and family- expect GREAT souvenirs from this place.

Tomorrow begins our first day of work and to say that I'm more than ready (as well as the rest of the group) is a vast understatement.

We're glad Armenia is on your mind and we appreciate prayers/positive vibes/well wishes!

Ellen