The final morning brought about a sense of gloom, with a force withholding one from leaving this blessed place. I enjoyed the last glimpses of a splendid morning as the day before, and then got ready to move. We made our way to another Malay colony of Bolana (Bo-la-na), west of Hambantota towards Colombo. The colony was situated off the town of Ambalantota (Am-ba-lan-to-ta) needing about 11km interior towards land. Folk in this colony were mostly farmers and cultivators of many produce. I saw guava the size of my palm, not to mention various other types of fruits planted in their gardens. Gardens today are very hard to come across in suburban areas, let alone those bountiful as this. Sunlight trickling through the canopy of trees creates numerous shapes begging ones attention.
The village school was our centre for meeting the youth, and we were not disappointed. A significant number of people were present making discussion interesting. Sudden power cuts are a norm as I found out when visiting the computer centre, thus these students also had a separate interactive session with a few ABIM reps. Results of this school for O/L’s are better (50 percent pass rate) than Kirinda in spite of lesser facilities. Students should travel to Hambantota to follows A/L’s like mentioned before.
On our way back to Colombo, the most stimulating endeavour would be climbing the Dondra lighthouse- situated at the southern most tip of lanka- before the town of Matara (Ma-ta-ra). A spiralling staircase gets you going a bit hazy, but nothing like the 333 steps to the top. The pics are on facebook, do check it out. The plan was to visit other lighthouses along the coast, but due to the lack of time it was not possible. Ending to this trip could not have been any better. Fishing boats riding out to sea, people swimming in the sea and playing on the beach, visibility of both sea and land for miles and miles cannot be bought for any price.
I realised something on my journey, and that is the Malay language is alive in the village, still breathing strong, very much alive. There is hope still for reviving the language that lay in ruins. Small ones are able to converse in Malay leaving city folk to shame. A mere flicker of hope, which someday I hope would shine vibrantly as the sun. Malays of this area are very tough, both physically and mentally. Having undergone much trauma at the hands of the tsunami; now they are once again looking towards the future, towards brighter days under God’s great skies. Their struggle for survival is definitely epic, worthy of mention in the annals of lanka’s history, or even that of a race rising from the ashes.
My deepest wish is that these folk are able to rise from the gravities of life. I pray for a better day for them, a better standard of living and guidance to follow the righteous path, strength to withstand hardship, and of course, God’s constant blessing upon them.
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