A Story of the triumph of spirit
Seeds In The Wind
Part Armenian history, part World War I history, but most dramatically, Seeds In The Wind is an intimate portrait of one family’s struggle to survive and triumph – with dignity and humanity – over the most life-threatening adversities.
the true story
About
Mary Ovian, daughter of Armenian immigrants, has written a compelling and captivating narrative of the 1915-23 Genocide as witnessed and told by her mother, Anna Samsatlian Ovian.
As a young girl in Adiyaman, Turkey, Anna recalls her peaceful childhood: sharing a home and adventures with relatives, visiting the vineyards and orchard groves at harvest time, the “delicious smells” of the fascinating and boisterous market place, care-free days at school, family engagements and weddings, and the religious rituals of the Armenian Apostolic Church, practicing Christianity since 301 A.D.
Anna’s idyllic and innocent childhood came to an inhumane, merciless, and violent ending when the Turkish Government officially unleashed its genocidal policy in 1915 to eliminate and remove all Armenians from their treasured ancient land. Men and boys were ruthlessly slaughtered; women and children were brutally forced marched in nightmarish refugee columns. The reader can genuinely feel and sense their horror and agony, as in one chapter titled “Oh, for one drop of water.”
Over 1.5 million Armenians were massacred, but “miraculously” Anna and a few relatives survived and immigrated to America in 1920 – “a country which has opportunities and freedom known nowhere else in the world. I am happy here,” – where she married another survivor, and raised a large, multi-generational family that has prospered and thrived into the 21st century.
Now available on Kindle
Seeds in the Wind
By Mary Ovian
About the author
Mary Ovian
Mary’s family was “deeply indebted” to her for preserving the history and stories of their achievements, triumphs and tragedies, and praised Mary for “giving us joy and help whenever we needed it” and her greatest gift, “Seeds in the Wind”, which “will be cherished by us, our children and grandchildren, and future generations, thanks forever.”
Listen to Mary Ovian, in her own words:
“The book is titled ‘Seeds In the Wind’ because those who made it out of the Armenian genocide alive were scattered around the world, like seeds blown haphazardly from a tree.”
The Armenian Genocide
April 24 marks the annual anniversary of a genocide at the hands of Ottoman Turks that claimed the lives of about 1.5 million Armenians from 1915 to 1918. Today, these atrocities continue throughout the world. To learn more, visit The Promise Institute
