Author Mariah Lynne
With DNA tests and family research so popular, there’s nothing better than to literally walk in the footsteps of your ancestors. My husband’s father escaped the Armenian genocide at five years of age, his family fleeing to France before acquiring safe passage to the US. Because of that, visiting Armenia was our most noteworthy trip.
A few years back, we visited The Mormon Family Research Center in Salt Lake City Utah. We were happy to learn about each of our parents’ past. We’ve been to Italy but never in our wildest dreams did we ever think we would visit Armenia. It felt so far away from Florida and it was: sixteen hours not counting connections and two flights from Miami.
Armenia is a modern thriving country especially in its capital city of Yerevan, but it is older than Egypt. Archeologists discovered a cave named Arena-1 containing 6000 year old wine making jugs along with an ancient shoe. It was home to Mt Ararat, home of Noah’s Ark, which is now part of Turkey. I recently read on “Armenian Fact of the Day” that St Nicholas, yes that St. Nick - “Santa Claus”, was born in 280 AD to wealthy parents in Antalya Turkey and his mother was of Armenian descent!
Throughout our fifteen day visit, we met so many kind and wonderful people. In the city Gyumri, devastated in the 1988 earthquake, I sat at an outdoor cafe having a cold drink with a couple on our tour from California. The husband, a college professor, was knowledgeable and fluent in the Armenian language as well as the country’s history. An elderly lady carrying a basket of sunflower seeds with a clear glass shot glass in its center walked over and sat down with us. I could see by her clothes and shoes, she was poor. The woman looked at me and told us, she wasn’t a beggar. She refused to ask for money but instead offered to sell shot glasses full of her seeds for whatever you wanted to pay. She said the money would help her family members, many of whom were out of work.
She leaned over and touched my hand speaking to me in Armenian. The professor translated. “She wishes you good health and a long and happy marriage.” The professor who had met her on a previous trip told me that locals said that if she made a wish for you, it would come true. For some peculiar reason, she only gave her wishes to me. When it came time to leave, she followed me to the bus and waved. What a sweetheart.
In the artist colony of Dilljan, a spa town often called Armenia’s Switzerland, I walked into the studio of a wood carver who carried on his family tradition. He showed me photos of ornaments he had carved for the White House Christmas tree twenty years ago. His work was intricate even on his larger pieces. You know I had to buy a carved egg to hang on my tree.
Many of the country’s modern celebrations like New Year’s take their roots from the ancient Persians. Ancient Armenians celebrated New Year’s on the 21st of March the birthday of the pagan god God Vahan preparing huge feasts to welcome and celebrate the rebirth of nature. If you have any Armenian relatives or friends, every family meal is a feast. One of the most ancient peoples of the world who respect their traditions, March 21st remained New Year’s until the 18th century, when it was changed to Jan 1st.
New Year’s remained the symbol of renewal and the rethinking the past. It is a time to begin again, to think over your mistakes to leave all the bad things in the old year and look forward to the new.
On the first day of the year, the head of the family gives gifts to every family member as was done thousands of years ago while children hung hand knitted socks on the yerdik a type of chimney, hoping their stockings would be filled on New Year’s Eve. The New Year’s table is bountiful and symbolized hope for a good year. Women baked a coin inside homemade wheat bread before dividing it into several parts as family hurried to find the coin that would give them luck in the year to follow.
We were at lunch in the Ruben School for Young Artists and cake was served for desert. One of the pieces of cake had a coin baked inside. The finder would have good luck for the next year. No one in our group found it but luckily our wonderful bus driver took a piece home to his kids and they found it.
We saw so many wonderful sights like Gerhard Monastery, a UNESCO World Heritage site carved out of the side of a mountain, the History Museum that traced the country’s origin from ancient Persia to the present, wineries, bakeries, and farms. We visited the last remaining pagan temple of Garni. We celebrated their independence day complete with fireworks and street performers. We were feted at a carpet company eating among the gorgeous and expensive Oriental rugs while enjoying a show of traditional dancing and music. We visited the Genocide memorial, and the National Theater of state folk dancing and song. We survived the world’s longest cable car ride, the Wings of Tatev. Armenia is full of life, history, and, for us, making wonderful memories as we learned about my husband’s heritage.
Title: PAWS for CHRISTMAS
Author/pen name: Mariah Lynne
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Satin Romance- a division of Melange Books,LLC
Date of Publication: November 3, 2020
ASIN: BO8LDRVN8
ISBN: 978-1-953735-03-04 print
978-1-953735-04-1 e-book
Number of pages: 141
Word Count: 46,000 words
Blurb:
It’s the Holidays and Jessica Munroe seems destined for misery. Nonetheless she is trying to make the best of it. Her fiancĂ© Jake, an emergency room doctor, dumped her for his nurse and just two weeks prior, she had to put her dog, her best friend, Mazy to sleep.
The pain of losing both the man she loved and her best friend has taken her to a new low. Jessica, determined not to stay down, is now hard at work trying to push through the holiday season by doubling up on Christmas lights and decorations she’s putting up outside her residence.
As Jessica works, a big brown scruffy dog appears in her yard and refuses to leave when she tries to shoo him away. He’s filthy, looks hungry, and seems like he needs help. A dog lover, Jessica takes him to her vet who discovers a metal bone shaped tag buried in his matted fur. The tag reveals his name, Sam, and a phone number to call if he is lost or injured.
Sam’s owner Trey Musgrove is in the hospital the victim of a head-on collision. Now Jessica’s life is about to change forever thanks to Sam, this big brown scruffy lovable dog.
Side effects of reading PAWS FOR CHRISTMAS are a happy heart, an uplifted spirit, new confidence in the future, and a smile on your face!
WEBSITE: www.mariahlynne.com
Buy links:
Amazon Books & Audiobooks
https://www.amazon.com/Mariah-Lynne/e/B00AYH099G?ref_=dbs_p_ebk_r00_abau_000000
https://books.apple.com/us/author/mariah-lynne/id543077728
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/search?query=Mariah+Lynne
Mariah Lynne Website
http;//www.MariahLynne.com
Twitter @MariahLynne1
www.facebook.com/MariahLynneAuthor
https://www.pinterest.com/mariahlynneauthor
Blog
https://mariahlynneauthor.blogspot.com/
Excerpt:
I arrived at Healthwell, picked up my pre-arranged
visitor’s badge, and headed directly to the sixth floor. I was so
curious about him I couldn’t get there fast enough. Starra was
on duty at the nurse’s station. Her face lit up like the shooting
stars that influenced her name when she saw me. She called
out, “Jess, please hurry. I told Trey you were coming. He’s
anxious to meet you. Please follow me.”
Starra walked briskly. I followed her pace into his room.
Since I studied that photo online so many times, I felt like I
already knew him. My heart pounded when I noticed the
curtain surrounding his hospital bed was half closed. Starra
walked us around to where he could see us, and we could see
him before introducing me.
“Trey Musgrove, this is Jessica Munroe. She’s the young
woman who sent you the note about Sam.”
Trey’s gaze was turned away from me as he drank water
from a straw held by another nurse. When he turned to face
me, his blue eyes took mine hostage. My body trembled from
his stare. It was as if we had known each other for a long
time. He looked a bit paler and thinner than in that photo but
still incredibly handsome. There should be a law against being
that handsome. His kind blue eyes looked tired and he
appeared weak like Jake said because he might have
“atrophied muscles.”
I remained quiet to let him speak first. He looked at me,
well, really stared at me. I wondered if my holiday outfit was
over the top. He spoke as I held up my holiday cookie bag.
“Jessica, I appreciate your visit and for taking such good
care of my Sam. I can’t tell you how relieved I felt after
reading your note since I feared the worst after no one found
him near the accident scene. I can tell by looking at you that’s
he’s a very lucky dog.”
Author bio:
Mariah Lynne takes readers on breathtaking adventures. Whether travelling through time, solving a crime, or finding love in unlikely situations, her heroines are strong willed independent women whose memorable stories keep the pages turning.
A graduate of Syracuse University, Mariah resides on a beautiful Florida Gulf Coast island, Ft. Myers Beach. Because she loves where she lives, Southwest Florida becomes the backdrop for all of her stories. Before writing fiction, she owned a business on the Beach and wrote weekly columns for two island newspapers.
Mariah is a member of Romance Writers of America and Southwest Florida Romance Writers where she served as Membership Chairman for five years. An animal lover, she served three years on the board of directors for a county wide no-kill animal shelter, The Animal Refuge Center and was honored to be selected Parade Marshall for the annual Shrimp Festival Parade 2010.
Her books include PAWS for CHRISTMAS coming this October, THE DUCHESS’ NECKLACE, SHADOWS ACROSS TIME, and THE LOVE GYPSY also available as an audio book. Her short stories “Love at First Flight” and “The Kaine Mutiny” are published in Vols. 1 and 2 of FROM FLORIDA WITH LOVE, while “Claws for Justice” is included in NINE DEADLY LIVES a mystery anthology featuring cats. Her very first book, SEABLISS, a cozy island mystery now out of print will be re-released as an e-book and in print December 2020.
When not writing, Mariah, a former video retailer, enjoys watching movies, travelling having recently been stranded because of the pandemic in Australia, swimming, and spending time with her husband Jerry. She still misses her amazing dolphin hunting dog Max, a shelter adoptee.
What a fascinating trip! I'd love to go here to visit someday.
ReplyDeleteIt was interesting in both a historical way and a family way. The a 6000 year old wine making jugs and a shoe of the same age were an amazing discovery. We met wonderful people and visited many monasteries.I hope you do go. Thanks for the comment.
DeleteStudying ancestry is so interesting! You have quite a story there. Best on your book, it sounds very good!
ReplyDeleteIt was amazing like walking back in time to both history and family history as well. Thank you for the good wishes. I appreciate them.
Delete