That dark day in July three decades ago

By Renton de Alwis

Upon dropping visiting family and friends at the Devinuwara Vishnu Devalaya Randoli perahara (Pageant) last night, I was seated for a few hours at a restaurant in Matara till the event was over to take them back home. It was drizzling outside and was a moonless night in spite of it being the Esala Poya Day. Watching those rain drops fall on the road outside, I thought of the tears we as a nation shed for over three decades. I remembered that tomorrow (posted today the 23^rd July) was to be ‘Black July’, one of the darkest days in the history of our nation when we triggered a curse that was to haunt us for over three decades thereon. I wrote this verse with hope, hope that we will make amends and move on to be the brothers and sisters we once were, till evil people and evil forces got us to stray that course towards conflict and mayhem.

Shame on him for he sought refuge in guns and bombs
Shame on us for we sought to settle score
Shame on ‘leaders’, ‘others’ who were not us
but led us astray on a waylaid path
Shameful shame, a thirty year curse
shed blood for blood sought tears for tears
ceasefires ceased talks silenced
terror reigned and bombs talked
Shylock’s pound deadlock made
nothing more nothing less
blasted minds blasted hearts
beyond repair reason doomed
ended abrupt ended dead
lessons learnt left unlearnt
minds warped hope hopeless
yet, this moonless night grope
hope gain gainful gain
hold my hand walk, walk brisk
walk right walk tight... walk
talk, talk right, talk soft
love... feel its warmth
North, South, East, West
plains and hills, ups and downs
See them one, see them all.

 

A shared Google Image