Delivered on Monday, April 2, 2012
I thank you all on behalf of our family for joining us here today. We gather today, by definition, as mourners. But I ask, instead, for you to view this moment in time more as a celebration of life - the life of a man who very plainly has touched many of you. For here you sit, today, to pay respect to the man you know as Baron Simon, Ammo Simon, or as I knew him, Dede. I call it a
celebration of life - my grandfather lived a full
and rich life. Not to say that it wasn't filled with the trials and animosity that comes with simply being alive. But we celebrate, and we take comfort, for one simple reason - to the very end he was
surrounded by his family in a home full of laughter and love. In light of this celebration, then, allow me to recount, what
I call, the parts that make up the beautiful sum that is my Dede.
Dedeyeen
Yerazuh – My Grandfather’s Dream
A
concept not unfamiliar to any here today, often called The American Dream –
Raised in an impoverished world with minimal resources. Leaving the only home he had ever known, leading a family across the world for the sake of having the
opportunity to achieve a higher dream. A
dream that has trickled down the generations evidenced by the fact that each and every one of his
grandchildren sits here, accomplished individuals each in his or her right, pursuing their higher dreams, and making them realities.
·
Dedeyeen
Kaghtsrootyoonuh – My Grandfather’s Sweetness
From his
oft heard “My sweet baby, my sweetheart,” to the bottomless supply of candy in
his car that made his grandchildren ecstatic that Dede was picking them up from
school. Dede
was unequivocally one of the sweetest men that graced this Earth.
·
Dedeyeen
Yerkun Oo Baruh– My Grandfather’s Song And Dance
So
much of my appreciation of Armenian music stems from car rides in Dede’s Ford LTD listening to tapes of classic Armenian songs, patriotic songs: "Akoolistsi
Katch Badanin", "Sasoontsi
Levonin Yerkuh", "Hey,
Jan, Ghapama", "Karoon,
karoon, karoon eh...". You
could always count on Ammo Simon to have a song for you at every occasion,
singing in what he called, “Akravee Tsaynov”, but one of the sweetest voices that still rings in my ears.
· And
of course – Sasno Bar: The dance that enthralls many, befuddles some, but
welcomes all. There will be an empty space at the lead of that line that can
never be filled… But the dance will continue.
·
Dedeyeen
Aghotk Oo Khuradun – My Grandfather’s Prayers and Advice
Every conversation with Dede ended with "Asdvadz
tsezee char portsanknereh, char achkereh heroo baheh (May God keep you away from evil eyes and evil calamity), "Take
care of yourself, my sweet baby". When you would ask him, "How are you doing today?" his response was always, "Took
lav yeghek, yes meshed lav gullam(If you are well, then I will always be well)". Every toast ended with, "Meg
partsee vurah dzeranak (May you grow old on one pillow).
And, from a very personal standpoint, two pieces of advice that would set the stage for so much of who I would become, as a child my grandfather would tell me, "Dughas,
gartah, gartah, mart yegheer (Study, study, and be a man) and finally, "Dughas, as tserkeruh mee aghdoder. As tserkeruh
puzheeskhkee tserker en. Yerpek aghdod bedk che ullan. (Son, never let your hands get dirty.
These are doctor’s hands. They should never be dirty.)
These are some of the individual aspects of what made Dede
who he was. More importantly, it is these individual units of his personality that have
made their imprint on my mind, and will remain the sweet memories that I will
keep dear to me as I reflect fondly on the man who for 30 years has been a
mentor, a friend, a cheerleader, a champion, a source of unconditional and
limitless love – My Dede.
