Five weeks in Sri Lanka

I spend 5 weeks in Sri Lanka after the funeral and it is a hectic time.  We have a lot to sort through, de cluttering the house and putting things in order before it is time to head back to Sydney.  We have an alms giving at the Elders Home according to the Sri Lankan tradition.  

My mum was very much involved with this home as it is run by the Methodist Church.  She often treated the ladies here to lunch in memory of my dad so we knew she would be pleased we had decided to give the ladies here a nice buriyani lunch in memory of her.

We also spend time catching up with some of my mum’s friends who were unable to come to the funeral as well as our close friends and family.  The funeral is a stressful time and there isn’t enough time to really meet and catch up with everyone who visits, so it is good to spend quality time with the family afterwards.  We are grateful to so many people who really rallied round my mum when she was ill, so it is good to be able to say thank you to everyone in person.

Some mornings, my sister and I walk along the beach.  We lived just a few minutes from the coast and I have always felt an incredible connection to water and listening the crashing of waves is my favourite form of relaxation.  

I am also glad to reconnect with my classmates.  In Sri Lanka, we spend all our childhood years in the one school, so the ties with classmates is a very strong one.

There are so many people who will miss my mum, besides my sister and me and our family and friends.  

I knew my mum was a generous lady but even I have been amazed at the stories I heard.From the fishman who’s family has brought us fish for generations to the garbage collectors and Ari and Leela, the people who cared for her...she will be missed.  

One of the stranger things that happened was that one of my friends Yvonne who I initially met in the Middle East and later reconnected with in Sydney happened to be visiting Sri Lanka at the same time.  She messaged me on FB and we managed to fit in a couple of days where she and her friends visited and stayed with me at my mum’s house.  

It was a hectic time, with tears and laughter and many moments of reminiscing.  I will always miss my mum but I leave Sri Lanka, knowing that the memories accumulated over more than 50 years will sustain me.