There are those who seek it, and know it not. There are those who once were there and should return. There are those who deny it, yet in truth, belong.

I recently attended a program where the Hayastan All-Armenian Fund (HAAF) was discussed.

I recently saw a newsy clip on YouTube about solar water heaters installed in Armenia. The homeowner was happily describing how he expected to recoup his investment in a matter of months.

Yup, pretty amazing, and that’s putting it mildly. You saw the news item. But it was presented so matter-of-factly, so blandly, it might as well have been just another news release from just another organization about just another run-of-the-mill dinner dance. But to me this was epic.

Since late August, between preparing for the October 6 formal opening with ribbon cuttings and all the niceties, and the November 1 fundraiser, the focus of community activity in Burbank has been BYC and more BYC (the ACF’s new Burbank Youth Center).

For ten days, three environmental activists from our homeland were in the Los Angeles area to raise awareness levels about the severe problems we face.

A decade, that’s how long it’s been… Before I go on, let me give you fair warning. This is going to be one of those sappy, somewhat trite, self-centered, and ultimately, possibly the most boring piece I’ve ever written.

Most people know Khachadoor Apovian primarily as the pioneer in using vernacular Armenian as a written language (for our eastern dialect). But he also climbed Mount Ararat, first on October 9, 1829 (September 27 on the Julian calendar), then two more times, which fewer people are conscious of. He was also first to summit Mt. Arakadz in July of 1843.

Some might remember the problem-plagued tunnel that was built in the 1980s to channel the waters of the Arpa River to Lake Sevan to halt the precipitous decline of its water levels. I hope that its namesake organization, Arpa Foundation for Film, Music, and Art (AFFMA), will not be similarly impacted after a troublesome episode at this year’s annual Arpa International Film Festival.

Just a few days ago, some good news hit regarding the environment of our homeland. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced a bill titled “Haiti and Armenia Reforestation Act”. But as with everything in life, it is not unalloyed good news. Also, in a somewhat atypical development, the bill was initiated by the senator, not the Armenian community, though he did reach out to our groups regarding the legislation.

Thank you. Really, truly, sincerely, thank you. But you’ve got to do better. This is my reaction to some people’s efforts. You know they mean well. You know they’re constrained by socio-political realities. You know they’re trying. Nevertheless, the result, their output is just not up to snuff.

What a complex mess confronts the world in Syria! And, the worst of it is, it didn’t have to be this way. It is a result of the U.S. and Turkey, and their twisted, hegemonic or expansionist, respectively, logic.

A lot gets done in, for, and around our communities. During the last two or three decades, we’ve also learned to publicize much of this activity fairly well.

I recently noticed something, or more accurately, assembled disparate pieces, accumulated over the years, to form a complete picture.