The father of the large family Tsovak Arakelyan was born in the same house where his 8 children were born.
Rouzan who is 15 years old, has 6 sisters and one brother but has never seen any of them going to school. The junior daughter of the large familyis 15 and goes to 9th grade this year. When she was getting ready to go to the 1st grade her sisters and brother gathered gave her advices and urged to learn well as they did.
All 8 children of Tsovak Arakelyan were born in Gilan (former Gilanlar) village. The village in the far corner of Khosrov reserve till 1974 had a school, dozens of industries, but now it has a few half ruined buildings and 30 inhabitants.
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Eight children at the edge of a God forsaken forest
The father of the large family Tsovak Arakelyan was born in the same house where his 8 children were born. When you ask why he wanted to have so many children, his answer is short "They are God given". Neighbors and relatives with the birth of each child came to congratulate and were wondering how the family would keep and raise them. But Tsovak working in the Khosrov reserve as a forester for 32 years knew, that he would take care of all of them, raise them and show them their destiny.
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God given daughters and the son are long married and moved to different cities and villages. Rouzan is Tsovak's and Alvina's youngest daughter and visits her parents only on summer vacations.
The road to school is long and difficult
Rouzan and many other children have to every time cross a 10km road passing through the forest and visit schools in different villages. She goes to the Ararat region, Jrahovit village school and lives in the house of her brother Aram.
When her classmates ask where is she form she has difficulties in explaining the place of her birthplace. Few have heard about that village at the edge of the forest and can hardly imagine people living without electricity, phones and internet.
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Education in the first place
September 1 is special for Alvina and Tsovak Arakelyans. Few can send children to school and prepare for a new academic year for 30 years in a row. But education for the large family is in the first place. Being cut out from the rest of the world and living many kilometers far from the nearest settlements is not an excuse to not send the children to school. "We are people of the land, we will not change our food and water for thousands of cities, but education is a necessity, let them learn and become intellectua" says Tsovak Arakelyan
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