POETRY CORNER

After the Departure…

A dew drop anchored on a leaf
Holding the morning Sun
In its translucent showcase
Like glass
But million times more fragile
Glitters like a diamond
Before it disappears in a moment
Without any trace of its existence.
The leaf, the anchor, and also the tree, the anchor’s anchor,
Outlives the dew drop
Only to fall to the ground
In a matter of time
And turn to dust eventually.
When we’ve departed
Nothing but a few hazy memories remain of us.
But what of them?
Could even the most treasured of them
Held fast in the unbreachable safe of soul
Of our beloved, survived by us
Beyond the reach of any rapacious mortal hands
Be impervious to the ravages of time?
Can our loved ones any more resist death than we?
In the final reckoning,
Are we any different from
The dew drop that disappears in the Sun
Or the anchoring leaf that falls from the tree
That too decays into dust one day?
Do golden caskets or imposing tombstones
Or larger-than-life statues
Come even close to what really matters?

Jayashantha Jayawardhana

****

Save Mother Earth

Mother earth I know you are weeping!
You gave us forests, mountains and hills
Rivers, streams, large oceans and lakes
Alas! man the beast in him
Does not value your worth.
Continues to fill the oceans with litter,
Destroying the waters and environment.
In the forests, we heard the twitter of birds
But now there’s no music
They have all flown away.
Large trees are felled one by one,
Man pays no heed and plants none,
Only barren land is all around.
Save our mother earth.

Yasmin Jaldin

****

Mind is not tame

Oh; guess, what is this thing called “ mind “ !
Which doesn’t appear to be seen nor able to touch
wonder whether it roams about the brain or occupies the heart
Why wouldn’t it have a shape, colour , or place

Mind is not tame, very stubborn, moves about every place
Ascend in a split second as high as to the Himalayan space
Hovers with delight through the unforgettable memory lane
Can travel in a flash a light year’s distance without any gain

It induces tear drops as a consequence of extreme sorrow
Influence displaying laughter and anger which we cannot borrow
Last the full life without being bias to anyone until the death
Stay inalienable from the body until the departing breath.

Palpitation, an impulse of the heart, could occur
When the mind is confronted with shame or abrupt fear
Even the resultant thumping of the heart you could hear
Of course, as a layman, little do I know how it erupts, my dear

A faculty that manifest itself in mental phenomena
Is what the scientists hitherto often understood as mind
The two organs, heart and brain, interconnected via
Muscular wall around heart is what they were able to find

The fact remains that mind is not tame
Unless it is tamed otherwise with meditation as a guide
It is the Lord Buddha who won against the opposite of tame
Practising mindfulness until enlightenment bona fide

SSJ Fernando

****

To whom I pray

Some says you have
Superficial power
Devotees offer you, holy coins
Covered with pure and
White piece of cloth
Bring them a treasure
With least cost
Devoteesare kept their hopes
On thresholds of you
To strengthen their life more
They bound by heart with you
Until they success
Affluent class of the society
Blessing in a different scale
Depending on their wealth
They believe that higher scale of offering
May causes to succeed their wealth
Than rest of the people
There is a belief that
God is unbiased and equally treated to all
God knows your little change
But you don’t know your change
That you are subjected to
You need God, only
You have faced into difficulty
Always god is a power
Your wealth is not the wealth of God
God is invisible, because he is within you
There is sarcastic social view
People always ask help of external God
Without addressing to God within
Once people faced into difficulty
They have been shaken
Then your God may be left you
You become emptied
Due to missing of godliness
Only a few knows
The God enriched all of us with
Enough stuff of resources
So what can you advise to our people
To become a human being
With due caring to their intelligence
Tell them dearest God
Just offering fruit plate or coin
It is not the way of due respect to you
Tell them to meet their inner God
Not by him at the out side
Please educate them
Not to follow you
Allow them to test
Their own power and strength embodied within
To overcome thechallenges

AmarasenaRanasinghe

****

Tribute to our soldiers...

Apart from protecting our motherland
throughout the day ,
making innumerable sacrifices,
you have been rendering a great service
as partners in development .
When natural disasters are irrupted ,
humanitarian missions are launched ,
climbing inaccessible hills ,
diving in rivers and in the sea,
digging storny ground with great effort ,
so as to save the lives of the survivors ,
How many of our soldiers have sacrificed
their lives and organs during such daunting missions ?
In an effort to control covid-19 epidemic ,
providing facilities to quarantine the victims
and treating them kindly in every possible way ,
the role you are playing
will be an unforgettable experience,
Though someone ungrateful elements
are striving to discredit you ,
The great majority of Sri Lanka
will ever never forget your admirable services...

L.A.K. Somapala

****

Sand mining and excavating

“Little drops of water, little grains of sand
Make the mighty ocean and the pleasant land.”
Water and sand makes this earth,
Don’t we agree with this age-old rhyme?
Damaging them would create chaos
Protecting them should be our motto.
To build one’s own humble abode
As well as a king’s or a queen’s palace
Water and sand is surely a ‘must’
To make any building – Isn’t it a fact?
 Urbanization booming over the world
Devours huge amounts of sand
Extraction of sand damages our beaches,
Widens the mouths of rivers and rivulets,
Sea water starts invading the rivers
Damaging deltas and creating problems.
Erosions trigger when sand mining in rivers
Shrinking the riverbeds that nature had bestowed  
Don’t you accept we’re meddling with nature?
What’s the aftermath? Loss of fertile land. 
Unearthing gems in mother earth’s womb
Causes disasters when illegally done.
Expert advice may reduce the damage
It’s our duty to follow their guidance
But alas! How wretched are we?
To treat as ‘nonsense’ this valuable assistance.
Fattening the owner’s purse is supreme
All other facts can completely be forgotten.
Protect this world, it is our duty
Before these situations develop chaos.

Lalitha Somathilaka