TRY by halwis. A reflection on the Bradby Shield and what it stands for History and tradition are great mentors. History assures us of who we are, and if we are brave enough, it can also teach us where we have failed or triumphed, behaved honourably or been disgraced. Tradition, for it to be useful, must be wisely chosen ...
Photo credit: unknown Home calls. Sometimes. Perhaps we share the longing with all of life – whatever it is that makes the Salmon persevere against raging white melt waters; birds migrate over mountain ranges; wildebeest cross perilous waters in search of the familiar green pastures – also draws us to the place of our birth, the memories of our ...
Flame, originally uploaded by halwis. Glory beckons;Be humble at heart and graceful in your ways.The moment will not be preserved in time's embrace forever,But swept by its currents, a fragile memory, floating in eternity.If you must vanquish others, deny not their inherent dignity. Remember, only worthy adversaries make a worthy victory.Failure beckons;Be resilient and of indomitable faith.Fail not your ...
An intimidating, plump book lay helpless on her lap; its spine pinned down on her right thigh. Stubborn pages of its chapters read were parted from those yet unread and held back by her slender fingers. He kept the seconds with each blink of her eyes and minutes with the rhythmic flip of pages. She did not seem engrossed ...
Originally published in TCK Family News in June 2008 I am not a Latin scholar to define the actual meaning of the college motto with any scholarly authority, but a recent discussion between a few young Trinitians about the meaning of “Respice Finem” brought out a few interesting facts that I felt was worthy of broader contemplation. ‘The Gesta ...
Life and work had got in the way of my reading for a while. Last year was probably one of the worst in recent memory. I did read the unabridged ‘Chinaman’ (four stars out of five) and ‘Tamil Tigress’ (also four stars) in the last quarter and even managed to squeeze in ‘The Lost Dynasty: Uncovering Sri Lanka's Secret ...
Voyages (c) Harendra Alwis It is never a question about moral or virtue, what is right or wrong; it is about being able to bear witness to your life and be proud; being able to say it and know you mean it; being able to give of yourself knowing it would be a worthy gift; being able to love and bear only the reflection of your lover - clear and beautiful without haunt or shadow - in your eyes.
Power to the idiots, power to the fools! The tattered shed full of rusted, blunt tools Power to the ignorant, obnoxious jerks! To their misguided lives with unlimited perks Power to the unimaginative and blatantly crude Their bird brained followers and deluded brood Power to the beautiful, intelligent and wise Their desecrated hearts and dysfunctional minds
Blessings (c) Harendra Alwis Go back to sleep, oh restless heart Doze not in the abyss of fragile dreams Mind the sting of that infectious dart Add no more tears to brackish streams Go back to sleep, dread not the night Her eyes will carry the first rays of dawn Wake not till that smile on her lips doth bloom And the mountains echo her mermaid song ~ October 2011 ~
Geometric Asymmetry (c) Harendra Alwis I see you change form, take on a myriad faces In my dreams, thoughts and everyday places You are in every cup of tea and woollen sock But most often I see you on the face of my clock You are in everything I touch, from cradle to cemetery So this is my ode to you, oh non-geometric symmetry!
Workbench (c) Harendra Alwis Isolated by International and local travel bans because of a civil war raging within its jungles, the northern region of Sri Lanka offers contrasting views of life and adventure to those who dare cross the Forward Defence Lines (FDLs). This week, Harendra reports from behind enemy lines, about the lives of those who have been ...
Paddling accross the Milky Way (c) Harendra Alwis Time’s flow carried her, half drowning in its currents, half buoyed by bygone memories, projected from the recesses of her mind, with a blue tint, until she found herself washed up on its western bank, half conscious, at a bend half way in its path, just before dusk on an ordinary ...
Bad news makes good news. This is quite true for mass media, but only because people consume bad news better and more willingly than good news. Bad news is sensational by itself and has a slightly longer shelf life. What do disaster warning systems, SMS messages about bomb-blasts and network monitoring tools have in common? They all alert us ...
Reflections (c) Harendra Alwis One of my primary school teachers used to say that three words – ‘thank you’, ‘please’ and ‘sorry’ – if more frequently used, could solve all the problems of the world. I wasn’t so sure, because despite her infinite wisdom that could apparently solve all worldly problems, she couldn’t even count that they actually totalled ...
The stuff of heroes Every yarn in the fabric of history is held together by a common thread. From the story of the light bulb to the grand history of nations, it is the colourful lives of its heroes and villains and dissensions between them, that keep the stories of our past animated and so compelling even today. Our ...
During the last couple of months, the former UN spokesperson in Sri Lanka – Mr Gordon Weiss has been promoting his book titled “The Cage” and making his case in support of allegations of war crimes committed in the final stages of Sri Lanka’s civil war. The Channel 4, film titled “Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields” being broadcast around the ...
An unreasonable faith in reason In a global human conscience that is being stimulated by Hollywood and enlightened by a steady, ubiquitous stream of 24 hour news cycle and celebrity endorsements that conditions our world-view, 'reason' stands guard at the gates of our minds like a bouncer outside a nightclub, letting in only what it deems 'reasonable' and discarding ...
The tyranny of dogma The stagnation of a culture or civilization, is often described by historians as its 'dark ages'. It is the inevitable outcome when the outflow of new ideas is stemmed by a slavish attachment to old ones. The shadows of time lengthen as the illuminating evolution of thought is driven to a standstill by tradition, where ...
The battle to own our minds The word "faith" is often associated with religion and mystic beliefs. It generally implies a blind acceptance or unquestioning belief of an idea or a set of ideas and therefore the opposite of 'skepticism' and 'doubt'. Faith forms the link between what we perceive to be 'known', and that which we admit as ...
What I really want to write about is 'faith'. However, I somehow feel I need to begin with my own beliefs. My faith consists of both what I choose to believe and what I choose not to believe. They lie outside the realm of what I can comprehend using my own reasoning and logic - because I don't need ...
