Nestled in the north-west corner of Colombo city, in Modara—a location where one would scarcely expect it to be—is a once-beautiful stretch of sandy coastline with a fantastic view of the ocean. An area that could potentially rival Sri Lanka’s finest down-south beaches, without any of the travel hassle. By almost all counts, Crow Island Beach should be known by one and all. Yet, why is this beach seldom spoken of and, in fact, hardly even recognized? The sad truth is that, for all its potential charm, Crow Island Beach, in its theoretically fabulous locale, is overrun with trash. In an ideal world, being situated near the mouth of the Kelani River would make the area a picturesque natural haven—all…
Tag: RotaractArts
Welcome, Welcome
Come, come you won't get bored,'cause I let you in my humble abode.Promise I'll keep your company to no end,For you are my bestest friend. There,Greet my mama on the couch.Worry not, they're inside this pouch.Her eyes and ears and tongue and hair,Stored inside with love and care. Look,My little brother wants to play ball.But, alas, he is useless than a clay doll.His arms and legs, you ask where?Oh, they are probably in his play area. We are an odd bunch, now you see.There's also my big brother in his study.He never comes out of that big ugly room,"Scary things happen there", whispers the moon. Fear, oh fear, I see in your face.Now I know you're about to run a…
Dreams
(Volume 02: Nightmares) It was a nightmare… The things we see when our eyes are closed, We call them "Dreams" I dream, but I'm not a dreamer. I just dream. It didn't feel like a dream, The darkness I witnessed Was too realistic. People toasting with Poisonous champagne, Serpents creeping leisurely In this scene. I wanted to scream. I tried and I cried To take me out of this world, Not knowing it's a dream. I saw boogeymen, ghouls And werewolves. But I was most afraid to see Humans. Corinthian was looking Straight at me. There's no Sandman to save me. When it all ended, I opened my eyes to see What I woke up into... - Rtr. Inura Dewasinghe
Month In Review
We are thrilled to share the first update of the Rotaract year 2024/25, covering the past four months. While there was quite the delay due to a combination of strikes, exams, the start of a new academic year, and mid-semester exams, we’ve finally pulled everything together as we approach the end of the semester! Transition Meeting The Rotaract Year 24/25 commenced with the transition meeting held on the 1st of July, at the Leo Youth Centre, marking the official handover of responsibilities to the new Executive Committee and Board of Directors for the Rotaract Year 2024/25. 24/25 රොටරැක්ට් වර්ෂය ආරම්භ වූයේ ජූලි මස 01 වන දින ලියෝ යෞවන මධ්යස්ථානයේ පැවැති සංක්රාන්ති රැස්වීම සමගය. 24/25 වර්ෂයේ සඳහා නව විධායක සභාවක් සහ…
வாடகை வீடு
அவன் அந்த வீட்டிற்கு குடிபெயர்ந்ததில் இருந்து அங்கு நிகழும் அமானுஷ்யங்களை கண்டு பயந்து கொண்டிருக்கிருக்கிறான். அவன் தனது தொழில் நிமித்தமாக அங்கு குடிபெயர்ந்தான். அவனது காரியாலயத்திற்கு அருகிலும் குறைந்த வாடகையிலும் கிடைத்ததால் அதை அவன் ஏற்றுக்கொண்டான். அவனுக்கு பேய், பிசாசு ஆகிய விடயங்களில் சற்று கூட நம்பிக்கையில்லை. அவனது பெற்றோர் எவ்வளவோ முறை எடுத்துக்கூறியும் அதற்கு செவிசாய்க்கவில்லை. அவ்வாறே சில மாதங்கள் மாயமாய் மறைந்தன. திடீரென ஒருநாள் அவன் வேலையை முடித்து வீடு திரும்புகையில் அவனது வீட்டு வாசலில் பல காகங்கள் கூட்டமாக இறந்து கிடைப்பதைக் கண்டான். சரியென்று தனது பாக்கை (Bag) உள்ளே வைத்துவிட்டு வெளியே வந்து அவற்றை ஒவ்வொன்றாக அப்புறப்படுத்த தயாரானான். அவற்றையெல்லாம் கஷ்டப்பட்டு அப்புறப்படுத்தி புதைத்து தானும் குளித்து விட்டு அங்குள்ள கதிரையில் ஒய்யாரமாக அமர்ந்து கொண்டான். கதிரையிலேயே உறங்கியும் போனான். சிறிது நேரத்திற்கு பின் சுவர்க்கடிகாரத்தை பார்த்த போது அது பத்து மணியை உரசி நின்றது. அவன் எழுந்து இரவு உணவை தயாரித்து உண்டான். பாத்திரங்களை கழுவி வைக்கும் போது சமையலறையில் இருந்த எல்லா பாத்திரங்களும் கீழே விழுந்தன. அவற்றை பார்த்து பயந்த அவனுக்கு…
Smiling, Smiling…
I looked around my room. Was it the thunder that woke me up? Was it the sound of the downpour outside? A flash of lightning like the one that illuminated the dark room for a moment? Must have been. Or was it the growing sense of dread that persisted throughout the day? I got up from the bed, sweat soaked linens flung aside. My bare feet touched the cold floor. Cold? No not just cold. Icy. So cold that it felt warm. I got to my feet, aware of my breath misting in front of my face. I had to…go. Yes. I had to go outside. There was something I must see. One step forward, then another, and another. I…
A Haiku
"Vampires or demons, Who are you most afraid of? No one, but myself." (Haiku, or Haiku poetry, is a traditional genre of poetry originated in Japan. Traditional Haiku consists of three lines and 17 syllables, typically following the syllable count of 5,7,5. The haiku poetry is usually based on observations and realizations of truth.) -Rtr. Inura Dewasinghe
Rib-Eyed
TW: Mention of cannibalism The setting was simply ideal for an elaborate yet cozy dinner for two. The sweet aroma of a home-cooked meal seeped through the house and its warmth coupled with that of the candlelight spread domesticity. My wife had prepared a dish of a rich steak that was demanding to be devoured. I took a tentative nibble and the flavours burst on my tongue. My wife had once again outdone herself this time. As I stared at her in wonder, her eyes crinkled a little and her lips grew into that familiar smile, a testament to the love that we had shared over the years. I watched as the candlelight danced upon her face, illuminating her expression…
Co-Editors Reporting to Duty!
Well, well look who finally made it! After what felt like centuries of trying to get this together, here we are at last! (Let us confess, co-writing was quite the struggle!) As many of you might have already heard, the Editorial is fondly known as home for Rotaractors who love to put their thoughts into paper, and WE have no argument there. I think it’s safe to say that most of our contributions to Rotaract over the past year have been through the Editorial. (Not saying that we slacked when it came to other projects!) Honestly though, the Editorial gave us freedom to voice our thoughts, and to publish our work—whether it was poems, short stories, or essays. Having people…
Painted with Resin, Multicolored Skies Grace the Ambiguous Portrait
PSA: We had quite the task structuring this article, so two things! One, it ended up being much longer than we anticipated, so we apologize for the long read; it's our last yap session, so please bear with us and two, there were people we each individually wanted to appreciate and some collectively. So, there will be bits that Kusali wrote, bits that I wrote, and bits we wrote together; we’ll let you know who wrote what before each section! (Sajani talks…) When my mind kept nagging me about having to write this article.. I was truly wondering what to write and how to write it in a way that justifiably encompasses my journey in Rotaract, which is also how…