The week that was…

The last week was an eventful week indeed. We barely recovered from the news of the death of the maverick inventor Steve Jobs. Although I am a loyal Microsoft right-brain person, I admired the ‘left-brain innovative spirit’ of Apple and the ingenuity of the man.

He had not gone to university and had what some others consider the base for strategic thinking denied to him. Nevertheless, he was a star when it came to designing ‘strategy’ for the iPod, iPad and the iPhone; most important products that brought the world at large to each of our palmtops.

Although this would not matter much to his stature or worth, I venture to humbly salute the man Steve, for his spirit and desire to serve humanity, for he did not let huge doses of ‘corporate greed’ rub off him.

Tributes paid

I paid my real tribute to him by using some of the technology he created in making a presentation last Friday at a Forum organised by the Institute of Architects of Sri Lanka in Colombo. I chose to interact with the audience through a Skype link, while being at my abode in the deep south. I saved fuel, time and effort by not travelling the distance (five hours in the least) and shared my two cents worth with the audience.

I wondered why we spend our valuable resources in getting to these places, without using the info-com technologies we have in our midst to the fullest. The sad reality is that they are used mostly as glamour gadgets at glamour events and not as frequently-used functional professional apparatus.

Almost at the same time of hearing news of Steve Job’s death, here in Sri Lanka we witnessed the demise of another star that touched the hearts and minds of many, with his brilliant performances on the silver screen. And that was none other than Joe Abeywickrama. Like Jobs, Joe did not go to acting school to learn his craft but with his inborn talent, hard work ethic and a rare sense and sensibility, was able to move his audiences to new heights.

Just yesterday, another doyen of the arts in Sri Lanka, Titus Totawatte (Ty Mama) was laid to rest. He was the brilliant editor and director of several path-finder movies and more importantly the one who first presented and popularised cartoons for children of Sri Lanka.

Ty Mama’s ‘Dosthara Honda Hitha’ and ‘Pissu Pusa’ were characters our children loved before the arrival of the more ‘sophisticated’ ones into our midst. His dubbed characters brought out the best in our children for he was able to equip them with values ranging from conservation of the environment to respecting their parents and teachers.

Just like Steve Job’s innovation of Apple, the iPod, the iPad and the iPhone which he shared with the world at large, both Joe and Ty Mama shared their innovative skills with us Sri Lankans and it is important that we value and recognise the contributions of these men as well.

Lost in gain

Then the week saw a shoot-out on ‘an election day’ and a settling of scores with scores dead and injured. Allegedly to do with drugs, thugs and the underworld, men were slain in broad daylight. The worst in us humans was on display and one was left wondering if the sense and sensibility of men of the calibre of Joe and Ty Mama is lost on us.  Last week, the ‘Occupy Wall Street’ protest movement had moved to its’ fourth week of occupation. On the Saturday and Sunday eighty two other cities all around the world joined in. In Madrid, Athens, London, Rome, Frankfurt, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Taipei and Mumbai they gathered and shouted slogans calling for social justice.

In New York they yelled, “We got sold out, the banks got bailed out”. In Rome we saw violence erupt with angry mobs creating wanton destruction of property. The call of the movement is for ending of corporate greed, waste of resources, unjustified payouts for the one per cent with its cost burden placed on the 99 per cent.

Rewarding time

I spent my Sunday last, at a Dhamma school in a remote village off Middeniya, not too far from where I live. My brief was to spend a few hours and share some thoughts with the kids, their teachers and parents. While doing that, we intermittently played a few games as well.

We spoke of Joe Mama and Ty Mama and we sang Nanda Malini Aunty’s song ‘Udangu Liyan Gotha Bandina,’ a song of a flower that does not desire to be used as an ornament to adorn ladies’ hairstyles or to be placed as the centre-piece of a dinner table. Instead, the flower wants to be trampled by people, thrown on the road of a funeral procession of a man who had given his life for his country.

We all sang Ty Mama’s composition of ‘Bai Kiyala Bai Kiyala Ba’ – A hit of the last decade among our children its meaning is to do with positive thinking in a ‘never say no’ rendering of lovely repetitive verse. I thought it apt tribute to the memory of Both Joe Mama and Ty Mama.

Monday, was even more special. It was the Parents Day of the ‘Ape Pattauw’ School for special children in Hambantota. They called it ‘Mauw Piya Harasara’ (tribute to parents). It was for me a most memorable experience. There were no dances, no speeches, no frills, just a most remarkable renewal of bondage between the staff and children with their parents.

It all started at 5 a.m. when a team of us went out there to prepare herbal soup (kola kanda) for the arriving children, staff and parents. They all came to the school around 7 a.m. The senior staff team, parents of the young volunteer staff team of eight, the special children and their parents all dressed up in white, got ready for a ‘Bhavana Pa Gamana’. Each held a white lotus flower placed on their palms and stood behind one another in a meditative walking position.

The special kids were to me, an example to those of us who think we are ‘normal’. The determination, the joy and resolve they had in joining the walk on the city streets was vividly visible on their faces and they were all excited about what they were about to take on.

A tribute must be paid to their caregivers/teachers for having motivated and trained them to take on this challenging task. Their parents joined them for the walk as well. The same resolve, the same meditative position. Only a single hewisi drummer accompanied them to lead them with an occasional rhythmic beat of the drum, much like in a Zen Buddhist ritual.

They are special

The idea was to demonstrate to society at large that these children indeed are special and they and their parents need to be treated better. They did not shout out or yell to tell the ‘normal’ people around, that they should not be mocked on the streets, that public transport should not leave them stranded at bus stops for they are slow in getting in, that they should not be called “Mongol children” or “the disabled or difficult” kids.  That their parents should not be treated as if they were sinners and not those who deserved recognition for the sacrifices they make and the fears they carry of the futures of their special children. That they should be treated with much care and love as we do our ‘other’ kids. That they should have equal opportunities for they have the capacity to love, to care for those who love them, to enjoy music, dance and play as all others do.

Instead they proved that they were as ‘normal’ as any one of us could be, by joining a walk in the early hours of the morning for an hour and half around the city streets. They passed crowded market areas, the newly-built beach games arena, the bus terminal, schools and the hospital to take the message to you and I, that they had what it takes to be good useful citizens if only they were given the opportunity to be ‘normal’ the way you and I think ‘normal’ to be. They returned to their school after the walk and sat on the ground on mats, facing their parents who sat on small stools. Upon the performing of religious rites, each of the young staff members and the special children fed their parents with their hands, kiri bath (milk rice) and sweets. The parents in turn fed the kids and held their heads rested on each of their laps.

Lessons learnt

A beautiful voice recited poems singing the praises of mothers and fathers highlighting the many sacrifices they make on behalf of their children. The song ‘Piya Senehasata Kaw Gee Liyawuna Madi’ (there aren’t enough poems and songs written on the love of a father) was also played in the background. The parents’ association gifted the parents of the staff with mango and other fruit plants in showing their gratitude to them for enabling these young volunteers to serve at the school. There were tears of joy on everyone’s cheeks and a few of the special kids cried out loud. What a difference it was from the usual demonstrations we see of such events… It was a most moving experience without any fanfare or fundraising objective. The only aim was to show they cared by reminding everyone of the need to appreciate the role played by parents.

May the lesson taught by the special children of ‘Ape Pattauw’ be an example to all of us who are ‘normal’. It made me wonder if indeed they were ‘different’ from those among us… for we are blind to see that perhaps we are the ones who are truly disabled. As for spending my week, it was eventful and I learnt many lessons.

(Renton de Alwis is a former Chairman of Sri Lanka Tourism serving two terms during 2000-2002 and again from 2007-2008. He served as Head of the Asia Division of the Pacific Asia Travel Association – PATA – based in Singapore from 1990-96 and as CEO of the National Association of Travel Agents Singapore from 1997-99. He also served as a Chief Technical Advisor and consultant with the ADB, UNDP, UNWTO, ESCAP, UNICEF and the ILO. Now in retirement, Renton lives away from Colombo in the Deep South of Sri Lanka and is involved in writing and social activism. He can be contacted at [email protected].)