Armenian National Poetry Recitation Contest 2019

Poetry Contest

About the first week of March this year, I was contacted by the Peace Corps volunteer, Liz Baron, who oversaw the Peace Corps side of the National Poetry Recitation Contest. She asked me if I had time to assist the teacher in Koghb who was interested in having some students compete in the contest.  I assured Liz that I would be happy to help and asked her to share my contact information.

Before I go on with the story of my NPRC adventure, I will need to explain the NPRC.  The contest is a partnership with the Peace Corps and the American University of Armenia and the Partnership & Teaching NGO in Goris.  Students in forms (grades) 7 -12 from all over Armenia have the opportunity to compete in regional contests.  The poems, or portions of speeches, are in English and the students are encouraged to improve their English pronunciations as well as comprehension through the pieces.  At the regional competitions, a winner from each form will be selected to compete in the finals at the University.  Peace Corps TEFL volunteers work with their counterparts to assist the students in learning their poems or speech recitations.  This year there were over 1600 competitors that would be reduced to eighty in the finals.  A Peace Corps volunteer was not required for registration, but most schools involved used one.

A few days after the request from Liz, I heard from Ani Yerknapeshyan, the teacher in the village of Koghb.  We talked a while and I agreed to come to Koghb and help with registering the students.  I am not a TEFL volunteer but decided it would probably be permissible for me to register as their volunteer. 

I was going to get a taxi but Roman offered to take me.  He dropped me off at School #2. I waited by the gate for Ani, but no one came.  I walked in the schoolyard towards the front door.  As I stood there, a group of women began staring at me through a window.  I figured it was the teacher’s lounge.  The director, who did not speak English brought a teacher with her to ask why I was there. As I tried to explain, my phone rang, and Ani told me she was at the gate waiting for me.  This is how I learned there are two schools in Koghb.  She sent a taxi to bring me to the correct school where she was waiting by the gate. I excused myself from the director and her translator․

I met Von the taxi driver for the first time.  He was very nice and new how to say, “Hello, how are you?” in English.  I did not know then how many times I would be in his taxi. Unlike most drivers, he immediately asked me to put on my seat belt.  Most seem offended when I do that, but he asked me to.   I realized a few minutes later, it was not my safety for which he was concerned but the policeman at the corner who might ticket us for being in the front seat without wearing a seat belt. Von smiled and pointed towards the policeman and then, after we passed him and grew closer to the school, reached over and undid my seat belt.  I still do not know how to say I like to wear one for safety, but he felt like he was doing me a favor.

Ani was indeed at the gate as we approached the school.  She seemed even more nervous in person than she had been on the phone.  She hurried me inside the school and upstairs to a room that I think was a part of the library.  I had told her over the phone that I would help her with the registration of the students, I pulled out my computer and my hotspot and set up the form for registration.

Ani had seven students in form 7 to 9 come and recite their poems to me. I recognized Meri as a student from Koghb who had attended my club for a short while.  After listening to each of the students, I registered them for the contest.  Most already did a good job at pronunciation It was evident Ani had worked hard with them. Then Ani told me we needed to go back to the other school to register their students. 

We rode in Von’s taxi back to the other school.  We went upstairs to a library.  The director of this school came in to meet me although she spoke no English.  I listened to five more recitations and we registered each one.  These were so much better than the earlier students’ recitations. I was impressed at their understanding of what they recited. Their hard-preparatory work was evident.

About a week before I began the great Koghb adventure, my counterpart Narine asked a favor of me regarding the NPRC. A friend of hers’ little brother was going to recite a poem.  I used my YouTube to read stories for my club students.  Narine asked me if I would do that for her friend so the young man could hear an American speaker reciting his poem. I recorded the poem that night and sent her the link to share with her friend.  I realized, I could read every poem that the Koghb students were going to recite and share my channel with them.  I told Ani of my idea.  She was excited but worried it would be too much work for me. I assured her it would not be.

As we talked about this, several teachers and the director came into the library.  They offered me coffee and chocolates.  I enjoyed the coffee and we talked about why I was here in Armenia and my teaching background.

The director offered to walk me to the gate where I would meet Von to take me to Noyemberyan. Ani went with us and I realized through Ani’s translation that the director wanted me to get a grant for them to fix up their cafeteria.  The cafeteria was tragic and very dark.  Like most things, it was built during Soviet times and had not been treated with much repair since. I let her describe what she wanted but gave no assurances of anything.  The Peace Corps grant process is very restrictive, and I understand why the longer I am here.  Everyone thinks that I have arrived with a checkbook from America and can help them.  After the cafeteria tour, Ani and I talked about me returning the next week to work with the students. I agreed and told her I would let her know as soon as the videos were ready. Von returned me to Noyemberyan.

That evening, I received a call from Hripsime, the English teacher in Noyemberyan that I had visited her classes.  She had heard that I was helping the teacher from Koghb and wanted me to help her students as well. I assured her That I would be happy to help.   We scheduled a time for Friday for me to come to her class and register her students. I met with her and listened to her students recite and registered them.  She had ten girls who wanted to recite poetry. Two of them were new members of my club. One was a regular student of someone from my office who tutors English after work hours. They did a great job with their recitations.  Hripsime asked me if her students were as good as the students in Koghb.  I told her that I did not want to compare.  The teachers in Armenia are very competitive. We agreed that I would come the next three Friday afternoons and work with her students.  The three who were in my club would get extra help on club days.  I also shared the fact that I would be posting all of their recitations on my YouTube channel.

The next three weeks were filled with poetry and recitations.  It was easy to tell the students who were working hard to be prepared.  I was enjoying each visit more and more. The girls in my club would giggle at each other but they steadily improved.  One of the students in Koghb, Arshak, was reciting a portion of a favorite speech of mine by Winston Churchill.  If I suggested an inflection or a better pronunciation, he worked on it.  I think the most difficult part of pronunciation was the “th” sound. They sometimes made a “w” sound for a “v” sound, but “v” is in their language.  “Th” is not.  I would show them to put their tongue at the base of their front teeth and we practiced saying “th”, but it continued to be a struggle and often had a ”d” sound. Suzy was reciting an excerpt from Malala’s Nobel Peace Prize speech and the last five lines began with “Those” followed by “Their” four times.  It was a struggle, but she was mastering it.

I was invited by both teachers to go with them to the Regional NPRC in Ijevan.  I felt I should go with Hripsime and the Noyemberyan students. I was told very little detail except to be at the school on Saturday morning at 8:30. As with all things Armenian, I was there at 8:00 and about 8:35, I saw the first student.  Hripsime finally arrived and a marshutni came to take us.  There was another teacher from Noyemberyan who was working with younger students. Two of the students had been in my younger club and I had never helped them because I did not know they were reciting.  Another of the lack of communication between people had surfaced.  I later found out she was a relative of my counterpart Narine who I had been told wanted to have me to her family home for dinner.  That was in October, I still have not been invited.

When we arrived in Ijevan, I took a picture of the Noyemberyan team and then went off to help the Peace Corps people putting on the event.  I volunteered to take pictures of each participant as they recited.  I was a bit duplicitous in this generous offer. I did like having a purpose, but I also liked that each of my students could see me smile at them and hopefully relax them as they began their recitation. Ararat told me later he was glad I was there because he saw me and remembered not to grab the microphone stand.

Noyemberyan older Students with Hripsime

Noyemberyan Younger Students

Koghb Students Ani on the right

I stood in the row dividing the auditorium at the front.  I took a picture or two of each student as they recited.  We did the younger kids first.  One of my girls, who is actually my best eighth grade English student, was three lines into her poem and she went blank.  I saw the panic in her eyes and my heart sank.  I looked at her sending every relax, you can do this thought I could muster, but, alas, she failed to finish.  This happened to a few kids that I did not know and the contest rules allow them to start over once, but few ever finished if they stumbled.  I was so heartbroken for my young lady.

We finished the first round and the students had a break.  There was pastry and coffee for all of the students and the volunteers.  The judges had it brought to them.  I had to go fight the lines although the other Peace Corps people told me to go around the kids.  I found myself acting the way I did back at my school In America and making sure that all the kids were fed before I got something. Luckily, I had brought a snack and water because the coffee was all gone and there was only half of a khachapuri left for me.

When the older students began, they had rearranged the stage just a bit.  The first student was one of my Noyemberyan girls.  She grabbed the microphone with one hand and looked like she was trying to be a rock star.  All of her slight emotional gesticulations were forgotten.  I leaned over to one of my Koghb students seated to my right and told him to stand behind the microphone stand and not touch it.  I asked him to share that with his classmates, but he was too nervous.  Each student grabbed the microphone like the first girl. I did not care about the other students, but I knew my students and how they had learned beautiful gesticulations to go along with their recitations. They were all gone.  The last two of my Koghb students, who had heard my instruction stepped back and performed their recitations with emotions. I finally breathed.  They were great. 

We took a few group pictures while the judges deliberated.  Ani and Hripsime were both asking me whose students were better. I said they all did a good job and that I needed to go back to my position to take pictures of the winners.

The winners were announced, and the younger student winners were all from Ijevan. I thought they had performed better than our students but Ani and Hripsime were upset feeling their kids had done better than some of the winners.  The older students were announced and again they were all Ijevan students.  This time I was even shocked because I knew a few of the winners had not finished their poems.  After all the pictures, there was a bit of mayhem and Hripsime told me we should go to our van and go home. 

In the van, Hripsime told me how upset she was and that the contest was unfair. I did not think any of the Noyemberyan students did well enough to win but I thought some of the Koghb students had performed better than the winners.  About this time my phone rang, and it was Ani.  She was very excited, and I had to ask her to slow down to explain the excitement.  She had gone to the judges table and asked to see the scores because she did not believe her students had done so poorly.  At this time, they found that the person scoring on the computer had accidentally hidden the scores on the spreadsheet for the Koghb students.  When the sheet was fully opened, Two students from Koghb, Suzy and Ararat, had tied for first place in the tenth form and Arshak had won first in the eleventh form.  So, three students from Koghb would be going to the finals in Yerevan.  I asked Ani to explain it to Hripsime and handed her my phone.  There was much animated conversation in Armenian. When she handed me back my phone, Hripsime asked me how this could have happened.  My friend Meredyth was a judge so I called her.  She is not an Excel expert but said it had something to do with hidden columns.  I thanked her and tried to explain it to Hripsime, but I do not think she ever understood the complicated spreadsheet explanation.  I understand Excel very well and was having trouble understanding how this happened. But I was happy for the three students from Koghb and Ani.

On Sunday, Ani called me and invited me to a celebration about the poetry contest at the Koghb Cultural Center on Friday afternoon. I assured her that I would be very happy to attend.  She said she would send a taxi. Hripsime called me a little later and said she was planning a celebration for the Noyemberyan students. She was not sure of the day yet and I told her about Ani’s plan suggesting the two of them discuss it.

Friday came around and I was ready at the appointed time.  A little after 3:00, Ani called and asked me where I was.  I told her she had told me she was going to send Von to get me.  She said she thought Hripsime was bringing me. I told her I had never spoken with Hripsime about attending together and Ani agreed to send Von to get me.  By the time I got there, the celebration was almost over.  I heard the last few recitations sitting in a place of honor on the front row by the director.  After the last student, Ani came out on the little stage and talked about how proud she was of the students.   She was presented with roses and the crowded room of parents and well-wishers applauded.  Ani then introduced me and asked me to speak.  Unprepared in America, I could have spoken in detail about the pride I had for these students and Ani. My Armenian is not good enough to adlib.  I said a few words and sat down.  The director spoke and another woman spoke who I found out later was the retired English teacher. Then I was hurried to the director of the Cultural Center’s office for coffee, fruit, chocolates and cake. Ani came with me but she had her children with her and her daughter was upset so she apologized for needing to leave.  She did tell me she was disappointed that I did not say more.

The retired English teacher talked with me since no one else in the room spoke English.  My favorite comment from her was that I should begin a club of all the English teachers, retired and active, to meet weekly and have coffee and talk with a native speaker.  I would be happy to have the club, but I have no idea who any of these teachers are.  I don’t think she had thought that part through before suggesting.

Von took me home from Koghb after the coffee party.  I had barely walked in my apartment when I received a call from Hripsime. Earlier she had sent me a text about the potential celebration in Noyemberyan School asking me if I knew some Andy Williams’ songs to play on my guitar. Tonight, she was telling me to be at the school on Monday for a celebration in the afternoon.  I did not ask her about telling Ani she would bring me to Koghb. The competition between teachers is very curious here in Armenia.

Monday, I attended the celebration at the school.  All of the students who had competed recited their poems.  One young lady sang three times in English between recitations.  My favorite was her rendition of “What a Wonderful World”.  My favorite recitation was by Gohar, the student of my coworker.  She recited a poem,” I see you in the Field of my Mind Baby Moo Cow”.  I did not like the poem very much, but she had worked so hard at pronunciation and gesticulation.  In the competition, she froze, grabbed the microphone and made none of her gestures or facial expressions.  At the celebration, she did it the way she had rehearsed, and I wanted to shout, “Where was that last Saturday?”  Again, I was introduced and asked to speak without being told.  I said a few short words and was mildly scolded for not saying more.

A few days later, I sent Ani a note asking her if she had seen the new poems from which the three students headed to the finals would have to choose.   She replied that they had already made their selections, and would I help again to which I applied affirmatively.   We made plans for me to watch the students practice on Wednesday.

Wednesday came around and Ani sent Von to bring me to Koghb.  Arshak was waiting at the school gate for me. He stopped me about ten feet inside and showed me a group of girls who were wanted to interview the American for a senior video project.  I acceded to their request and was filmed answering one question which the girls giggled through while asking me.  Off Arshak and I went to the library where we were greeted with coffee. Suzy was reciting an excerpt from Oprah Winfrey’s “Me Too” speech at the Academy Awards, Ararat was reciting a poem,”I am a fool to love you”, and Ararat was reciting an excerpt from the Dalai Lama's “Nobel Peace Prize Speech”.  They were all very good, but I made a few suggestions to each of them about mood or pronunciation.  I explained part of the Dalai Lama’s speech in context of the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia.  It seemed to give Arshak more clarity. We agreed that I would return the next week and that I would record all three pieces on to my YouTube channel again.  When we met next, we would go to the Cultural Center so they could practice on a stage and with a microphone.

The next Wednesday, Von came to Noyemberyan to get me and I brought my camera and tripod.  All three students were standing outside waiting for me. We went inside and Ani was talking to the stage manager of the culture center getting him to turn on lights and microphones.  The students, being students, clowned around a little bit while we got everything set to record them.  Each performed their recitation twice, and I recorded them.  I gave them advice between each recording. I told them I would put their best recording on my channel so they could see themselves and hear some of the things about which I was coaching them.  Typical of high school students anywhere, one of their phones went off as they were speaking and we had to start over on a recording,  Their very polite nature and the authoritarian style of most teachers made the student worry that I would be upset, but I just laughed and said again. I know how to say that in Armenian.

The next week, I returned to the Koghb center thanks to my taxi driver Von.  Again, the students were outside waiting for me.  We went inside and the stage was ready to go.  Ani came in and we began.  I recorded the students doing their recitations twice each giving instruction before each one. It was nice to see their improvements. Ararat was giving a very good emotional understanding of an African American poem about love and the blues.  Suzy was enunciating her Oprah piece with tremendous passion. Arshak was doing his best to characterize the passion of the Dalai Lama.  I was so proud and hoped that they would do well, not knowing what their competition was.

Saturday was to be the big competition.  The weather was terrible. Ani had asked me to be ready at 8:00 and she would call me as their van left Koghb.  To make it easier to find me, I went to my office and instructed her to pick me up at the little park across the street. I waited under a canopy outside.  The white van pulled up to the park and I ran across the street and climbed in the front seat.

My three competitors were joined by a friend who had also competed in Ijevan.  Arshak’s mother was sitting with Ani.  They were all very animated and talking with me and I assured them all they were going to do a great job.  We stopped for the van to get gas near lake Sevan and we were let out at the market and bakery at Tsvagyugh.  The students ran to buy unnecessary junk food while Ani, Arshak’s mother and I had coffee.  Ani also bought some treats which I avoided.  This is one of the best bakeries in Armenia and the pastries and lavosh stuffed with herbs or cheese are amazing.  Off we went for Yerevan after nibbles, coffee and gas.

As we were driving closer to the city, Ani began telling me she had received a call from the organizers asking her to sit on the front row in the auditorium because she was going to be recognized.  Unbeknownst to Ani, I and the three finalists had written letters of support for her and the work she had put in preparing her students.  Ani’s primary job at the school is as the French teacher.  She had put in many hours with the students preparing them.  Her first attempt at ever putting a team together in this competition and she had three finalists.  That is worthy of recognition. 

We arrived at the American University of Armenia where the contest was to be held.  I saw many of my Peace Corps brothers and sisters and was asked to sit but I explained I was staying with Ani.  We took the students through registration and got them seated with their forms.  Ani and I moved to the front row, directly behind the judges.  I adjusted my seat so I could take pictures between two of the judges in a non-intrusive way. Ani was very nervous as the program began.  Five teachers were called to the stage as finalists in the teacher recognition.  The look of surprise on Ani’s face was wonderful when she was announced as the outstanding teacher with the organizer reading a portion of the letter from Suzy.

The contest began.  The students were all excellent, the top 80 of 1600 competitors. A favorite moment for me was when a judge stood up and admonished the audience for not silencing their cell phones after several requests.  He insisted the student who had been interrupted start over  on her recitation.  Some phones still went off and I saw him cringe every time as I was sitting directly behind him.  The three younger forms finished and of course there was a coffee break so there was wandering around and visiting with other volunteers before I took my front row seat next to Ani.

The Tenth Form contestants seemed to be either Orpah’s speech, Joni Mitchell’s  “Clouds” , or “I am a Fool to Love You” by Cornelius Eady.  Arshak and Suzy both did their recitations very well.  Some of the others did their much more dramatically which was not supposed to be a factor as much as pronunciation and evident comprehension.  The judges seemed swayed by the performers rather than the recitation accuracy, which held to be true when the awards were given.

The Eleventh Form was dominated by the Dalai Lama’s speech.  Ararat did a great job with his recitation.  He stayed calm and sounded very matter of fact much like the Dalai Lama.  There was a girl before him, however, whose pronunciation was so perfect she did not have any Armenian accent.  I immediately thought, “We have a winner.”  When the contest was over and the winners announced, Ararat had come in third place and the young woman I predicted had won.  I spoke with afterward and found out she had lived in California and was only recently living in Armenia. I did not think that fair, but I was still proud of Ararat.

When all the photographs had been taken and congratulations shared, we left for the van.  I had wanted to offer to take them somewhere to buy pizza for everyone.  Ani surprised me and told me she had a sponsor who had given her money to take us out to dinner.  We went Yerevan Mall food court for pizza.  I sat with the boys and the driver.  The 11th former who did not recite this time grabbed a slice of pizza and began eating so I joined him.  A few moments later, Ararat showed up with plates for us for our pizza. The first young man and I both looked a little sheepish, but we set our slice down between bites after the plates were delivered.  After dinner, I did not know what was happening, but Ararat offered to show me where the bathrooms were in the Mall.  I assumed we were getting ready to leave, but it turned out Ararat was my babysitter while the women went shopping for a little while.  He asked if I minded and I just laughed. I told him a mall is a mall and I have waited for shopping women more than he would understand.

We met the ladies by the entrance a little while later.  I asked Ararat where Arshak and the other young man went.  He told me they were spending the night in Yerevan. We rain in the rain out to our waiting van. The weather and traffic were so terrible that I think it took longer to get out of Yerevan than it did to get there from Noyemberyan.  It was terrible but Ararat chose to sit in the front seat with me and we talked about photography and my camera.  I told him that my camera in America was better and that I had bought this one here in Armenia. He said he was maybe going to save up and get a camera next year.  I may have to give him my camera when I return to America if he does not have one yet.

I also was watching the weather conditions.  Last year before I came to Armenia, I was touring Civil War battlefields in America.  There were torrential rainstorms. And flooding in so many states that several of the campgrounds I had planned on staying in were closed.  I saw fields so full of water that they looked more like lakes with barbed wire fences at their edges.  I saw fields

filled with water along this familiar route in Armenia.  It reminded of the flooding I had seen.  The roads were still clear of water but very slick.

We stopped again at the bakery in Tsvagyugh while the driver filled the van with gas.  I accepted one of the lavash pies filled with Armenian Herbs from Ani this time and it was so good.  I also bought a large slice of baklava and a small eclair to take back home for morning coffee. We headed out again and it was fun listening to them find music.  Sometimes they sang along with American songs and sometimes Armenian.  I have grown to love the soulfulness of Armenian music very much. 

Suddenly just outside of Ijevan, Ani started complaining that she did not feel well.  I thought she might be getting car sick but she told me it was her high blood pressure.  The car was stuffy from the windows all being rolled up because of the rain. She asked if I would lower mine so she could get some air. We stopped at a medical facility.  The nurse took Ani’s blood pressure.  Ararat ran around with empty Coca Cola bottles filling them with water from the spring whee we stopped.

Ani looked very pale when she came back to the car and I insisted she sit in the front seat and I moved to the back seat,  I was worried about her but she seemed to be getting better from whatever medicine she had taken and the air.  A big scare at the end of a great day but all