It’s been nearly
a year since I went sheepherding with the Yazidi family in my old host family’s
village of Taperakan. The experience was
a little different this time because my language skills were much
improved. I arrived in my host family’s
village in the beginning of May with some of my fellow Peace Corps Volunteers
on a Saturday and in the evening we stopped by the Yazidi family to let them
know we’d be accompanying them in them in the morning. They remembered me right away and were as
equally welcoming to the others and me as they were a year ago.
One slight
difference I noticed right away was the size of their flock. Last year I noticed the enclosed area the sheep
stayed in was nearly packed and this time it was about half of that. I asked Ashot, the family member who seemed
to be the business manager of the family operation, if he sold most of his
flock and he responded with a very sad look on his face. It turns out that winter was unusually long
this year and that a large portion of his flock had died in the cold. Ashot told me that after the animal expenses
he was barely able to provide for his family.
I learned that
sheep get sheered annually and the average life span of a sheep is about 7
years. This Yazidi family also raised
cows, goats, chickens, and rabbits. This
farm had many generations living under the same large roof and they even
invited all of us in for homemade cheese and vodka to chat. The grandson was also here and I showed him a
picture I took of him on a donkey from last year on my cell phone. He looked a bit taller and talked about how
much he wants to be a soccer player when he gets older. If you’re unfamiliar with the Yazidis they are
also known as Kurds and the largest ethnic minority group in Armenia. They reside mostly in the central and
southern region of Armenia and worship a peacock. Yazidis mostly reside in northern Iraq but
have been living and prospering quite nicely in Armenia for many years.
The daily life
of an Armenian farmer is tough and usually begins at 5am everyday and milking
all the livestock. Ashot invited us to
take part in the early morning ritual but I had to pass. We did arrive around 7:15am though to see
them get the sheep out of their pen and on to greener pastures. The weather was pretty decent and once we
crossed the major highway the sheep knew where to go and it was smooth
sheepherding from there. Hasoor, the
grandfather and main sheepherder stayed with the sheep and us while Ashot just
escorted us past the highway and then returned back to the farm. Hassoor wasn’t as talkative and inquisitive
with me as he was last year but that’s ok.
Luckily along
the way we met other cow herders who I remember from last year. They were jovial and in good spirits and
quite ready to take a photo with us.
Time and silence with the occasional “bahh….bahhh” is all you have when
sheepherding so it gives you a lot of time think and ponder things. This moment can be quite liberating as you
are away from technology, traffic, and other things that keep you
distracted. It can also be a little bit
unnerving as you begin to wonder about the decisions you made in life and
whether or not it was the right choice.
We stayed just a
few hours before deciding to head back to our host families and take a
nap. Sheepherding and hanging out with
the Yazidi family is definitely one of the main highlights of my volunteer
experience in Armenia. Getting out of my
comfort zone and learning about new people with a different way of life is a
great learning experience and why I love to travel so much. If you get the opportunity to do something
like this, don’t pass it up!
Happy
traveling.
