When the UNI Verse project launched its second phase, I wasn’t too interested in writing anything,thinking who would be interested in a narration of my routine university experience so far. Yet, I had nochoice but to write. Interestingly, an Instagram post shared by a friend flicked something in my scatteredmind to streamline memories from my first year at university, and I began to realize that university life isquite the rollercoaster. Before delving into reflections, I’ll backtrack a bit. Securing a spot at the University of Colombo waspretty much what I always desired, mainly for wanting to continue to take comfort in the city that hasalways been home. That Instagram post, though - it struck a chord. The post shared by…
Tag: UOC
Reflecting on a Transformative Rotaract Year: A Journey of Leadership and Achievement
As the Rotaract year draws to a close, it's a moment of reflection and celebration for the Rotaract Club of the Faculty of Arts, University of Colombo. Amidst the challenges and triumphs, this year has been particularly memorable for the club, especially for those who took on significant roles in its leadership. In my Rotaract journey, I served not only as a Sergeant-at-Arms but also took on the role of co-director of the Professional Development Avenue. Joining the Rotaract Club in 2022 marked the beginning of a journey filled with opportunities for personal growth and contribution. Over the years, I actively participated in various projects, honing skills in photography, graphic design, team and project management, and fostering discipline among club…
A Place of Hope and Depression
On my very first day at university, I ended up lost. It was quite a memorable day and became the very first day of many where I would end up being lost in university or on a journey back home from the place. Suffice to say, ending up in Slave Island, of all places. without knowing a thing about Colombo was quite the experience. This was followed by the very first day of orientation, where I ended up being late because I had to get off the train early due to certain complications, and ended up spending Rs. 2000 on a taxi to university. I knew that I was in for a very long ride. I entered the Faculty of…
වචන ගළපන්නෙකුගේ හදවත
රොටරැක්ට් කතුවැකියේ දෙවසරක මතක ඉන්න තැනක ඉන්න බව දැනෙන්න සලස්වන එක මගේ සාමාන්‍ය ජීවන ලක්ෂණයක් බව බොහෝ අය දන්නවා . මං එහෙම කරන්නෙ ම ඒ ස්ථානයෙන් හරි ඒ අවස්ථාවෙන් හරි උපරිම ප්‍රයෝජනයක් ගන්න මට තියෙන ආසාව නිසාමයි . ඒ නිසා ම විශ්වවිද්‍යාල ජීවිතයේත් උපරිම ප්‍රයෝජන ගන්න පළවෙනි දවසෙදි ම මම හිතාගත්ත . ඒ නිසා අධ්‍යයන කටයුතු වගේ ම විෂය බාහිර කටයුතු ගැනත් මට ලොකු උනන්දුවක් තිබ්බ . සිව් වසරක උපාධි අපේක්ෂක ජීවිතයේ දෙවසරක් අවසන වෙමින් තියෙන මොහොතක් මේ ගෙවෙන්නෙ . ඉතින් ඒ දෙවසර පුරා ම සරසවි ජීවිතයේ වචන හා බැඳුණු රොටරැක්ට්මය මතකය ඔබත් එක්ක බෙදා ගන්නයි මං මේ සූදානම් වෙන්නෙ . රොටරැක්ට් කතුවැකියේ ඒ ගෙවුණු කාලය පිළිබඳ මේ මතක සටහන කතුවැකිය වෙනුවෙන් ලියැවෙන අවසාන සටහන බවට පත්වේවි . කවි ,…
Farewell and Gratitude: Reflecting on Our Community Service Journey
Community Service Reflection: Rtr. Manthini Attygalle, Co-Director During my first year, I was curious about Rotaract. Seeing my friends from other faculties and universities as active members influenced me to join the club. While I was a member, I found myself particularly drawn to community service projects, which resonated with my lifelong passion for helping society. My first physical project was “Supipena Kekulu," which we did with a children's home. I was amazed by how our former Community Service Director, Rtr. Buddhimali Parindya, managed the workload so well, even during exams. Watching her juggle all the responsibilities with such grace and dedication was truly inspiring. She showed me what it means to be passionate and committed, even when times are…
In the Realm of Military Service: A Conversation with Mrs. Sujanthi Namasinghe
In the field of military service, women are constantly breaking down gender stereotypes and advocating for equality through their professions. Through Beyond the Labels, we had the opportunity to speak with a retired Air Force Aero Instrument and Electrical Technician and Senior Non-Commissioned Officer, Mrs. Sujanthi Namasinghe, about her journey, experiences, and reflections on gender equality in the military. What inspired you to pursue a career in the military, and were there unique challenges you faced as a woman entering this field? I thought of joining the Air Force after seeing the beauty of their uniform. And I've always liked the Air Force Band. After seeing those things, I became interested in them and wanted to join the Air Force.…
Nurturing Creativity: A Conversation with U. L. Thiyara Ranasinghe
U. L. Thiyara Ranasinghe is the proud owner of @Ytartsandcrafts, an Instagram-based hand-painted cards business she manages with her sister. We interviewed Ms. Ranasinghe as a part of the project ‘Beyond the Lables’, in order to get insights as to her motivation in starting this business, the hurdles she faced and her advice for aspiring female entrepreneurs, among other key aspects. The following are the questions we directed to Ms. Ranasinghe during the interview and her remarkable responses. What motivated you to start your business? Since we were kids, both of us were talented in art, and my sister and I used to make birthday cards for our parents as well as our best friends every year. They were quite…
Month in Review: February
Hello everyone! February was one of the busiest months for us undergraduates because of all those mid semester assignments and exams! However, that did not stop our Rotaract club from conducting various projects and initiatives, and as usual, we are here to fill you all in! A massive thank you to our dedicated group of writers who tirelessly documented all of them amidst so much work! You guys rock! Happy reading! - The co-editors The Editorial Following the success of our "Cinematic Narrative" project, we have published numerous articles capturing the essence of storytelling on screens. Further, we've ensured quality through proofreading and editing the content and also providing gripping captions to keep our audience entertained. As we continue to…
Desert Flower: A Tale of Resilience and Strength
The movie “Desert Flower” relates the extraordinary story of the courageous Somalian girl Waris Dirie, who has been through a journey of struggle and hardship. Beginning from her life in the deserts of Africa to establishing herself as an internationally recognized supermodel, her story is incredibly inspiring and compelling. Just as a desert flower, she blooms in a desert, thriving hardships and harsh circumstances with her strength and resilience as a courageous woman. The director, Sherry Hormann, has done a marvelous job of showcasing Waris’s autobiographical tale along with its dramatic twists. Especially, the role of Waris is outlandishly performed by the well-known supermodel and actress Liya Kabede. The plot is mainly based on the book ‘Desert Flower', which is…
Interstellar: A Space Odyssey of Fatherly Love
Why does a father's love often go unnoticed? Let's explore the depths of fatherly affection through the lens of futuristic storytelling in the popular sci-fi flick 'Interstellar'. Interstellar is a cinematic exploration of a father's love transcending time and space. The movie goes beyond typical sci-fi, crafting a story full of love, sacrifice, and the unbreakable connection between parent and child. It's set in the near future, when Earth is in trouble because of a big famine caused by environmental damage. Cooper, his kids, Tom and Murph, and his father-in-law, Donald, are farmers, like most people. One day, during a dust storm, Cooper and Murph find something strange in Murph's room—a pattern made by falling dust. It turns out to…