The Virtual Library
I have no image of the vault or shelves, or tables with lamps scholars use to consult books. I am seeing the library from a great distance, pleased that the building stands…
Poetry
Ode
The following poem was read out to the Sri Lanka parliament by the Hon Lakshman Jayakody and appeared in the Hansard 1998. It was reprinted in the ‘Anthology of the Galle Literary…
An Eternal Hope, Mandela!
Photo courtesy People usually pay tribute to great individuals, once they are no more. However, I wrote this poem about Nelson Mandela, in order to pay homage to him, while he…
Howling
What shall I do, living in Peru, with this report of systemic failure in U.N. monitoring in Sri Lanka, how bureaucrats drove away from the disaster to come, buried hard- earned stats…
Happiness Blues, Sri Lanka
I don’t know what to say, my friend, I have some blues that don’t seem right, too light and fancy free, happiness and all that putty you poke and pat, grinning silly,…
The Writer Fighter
Have you become a lance corporal, wing commander, lieutenant, private, sergeant, major general? Or are you a writer transporting yourself into trenches to wield a saber against a vague menace, bespectacled, sitting…
Lance Corporal
I’m tired. It’s midnight. I’m propped up Against the mud Like a cannon gun, To fight The battles you Criticise From behind Your trenches Of ink. My blood. Your right. That’s not…
From the Hold
I don’t merit praise, who am I to suggest inventing the west moon for the Lankan imagination, or that one day a Tamil child will rise from fires to claim the rights…
Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow
This request to write in 25 words or less the hint of a larger narrative teases my Muse to dance on a pin, prick the skin and bleed monsters, unnecessary to acknowledge,…
The burning of the Jaffna library: 31 years on
31 years ago, the public library in Jaffna was burnt. As noted online, at the time of its destruction, the library was one of the biggest in Asia, containing over 97,000 books…
Extra Time
The latest news from the family-run, once independent island, is the appointment of a presidential committee to decide upon which recommendations to adopt regarding the erstwhile ethnic question, which has been subsumed…
Defending the Country
They cry foul in that cauldron of a news room, saying these human rights defenders are traitors, publishing their names and photographs, inciting fears of death squads preparing to drive white vans…
Off the Field
In the end we have only ourselves to pick up from the grass, the bed, the gymnasium floor. The dead will have their say in dreams, and fond ones too, how the…