Funday Times

Our friends’ Peddah Boat
Continued from last week
As soon as the loud speaker of the nearby mosque called for early morning prayers I got up. Even before I had my bed tea I tried to read the Sinhala text book on my own. It had a lot of difficult words that I didn’t understand. But I went on reading it until such time father would explain it in detail.

In the morning we set off towards the temple. We plucked some Olu flowers from the abandoned field, on our way. Four of us were rather impatient until the Sunday school was over. We hurried back along the “Devata” (Narrow) path rushed to the ferry; looked up the river, looked down the river for a glimpse of the dwelling peddah boat.

“What are you all doing here close up on noon?” The tall carter who sported a thick moustache demanded of us. He had come to the river to bathe his ox. “If the Sunday school is over go home without being at the river”, the carter told us before he loosened the ox of his bullock cart.

“If noon time is bad for us how is it good for him to bathe the ox?” Sunil muttered. “Let’s go home” Kamani suggested. “Yes, this is no time to argue” Sumana agreed. We hurried back to our respective houses. I had a quick lunch and took my Sinhala text book to go out.

“Where are you taking that book?” my mother wanted to know. “I am going to the mango grove to read this” I had an excuse. “Wait, I’ll explain it to you” my mother said. Thus I was compelled to stay back. While mother was describing the text, Kamani peeped through the window.

“Are not you coming?” she asked. “No she is studying, if you like, you also can join” my mother told her. But she didn’t come.

A little while later Sumana peeped in. I was impatient to join them. “Come and listen to this nice story, about the Chinese girl who lived in a boat” my mother invited her. Sumana agreed and came in.

After sometime Kamani followed her. But Sunil didn’t come. Instead he gave a signal to say that he was going to the riverside. Sumana was intelligent enough to ask various questions with regard to the lesson.

“What are chopsticks?” Sumana asked. “They are used by the Chinese to eat rice etc”. my mother explained. But Kamani and myself were rather panicky because our thoughts were at the river. My mother was careful enough to prolong the lesson until five o’ clock; and we had to obey her for the day.

The following day after school double session was over. I went home about ten minutes earlier. I did not even have my tea as my friends were waiting for me. We didn’t take the normal route to the river. Instead we crept through the fences between old Bastian’s hut on the three foot path on to the abandoned paddy field and to the river passing the stilt walker’s home.

Sunil had seen the dwelling peddah boat going up stream yesterday too. The children in it had waved at them. How Kamani, Sumana and myself envied Sunil for getting such an opportunity. We sat on the roots of some man grove and waited for the sound of the peddah boat. Sunil climbed up a himbutu tree to get a better view.

“It is coming” Sunil shouted. We got up and we were excited. “Hai, hai” they said. Two girls and the boy. “They are going without stopping” Sumana said. “We started clapping asking them to come. They said something to their father. Even their mother came out from inside. Their father obliged. At last the dwelling peddah boat was ready to reach us. But they were not in a position to meet us at our ferry.

So we ran parallel to the slow moving peddah boat until we reached the Pallimulla ferry. We jumped in to the water and then to the peddah boat without any formal invitation. The children were too happy to meet us. They were born adventurers. Whereas we were half hearted in adventuring.

The peddah boat children attended a school in Panadura and after school they waited in the peddah boat until such time parents returned from work. Their father was a labourer and their mother sold leaves at the market. “But why do you all live here?” After listening to what they had said Sumana asked.

“This is only a temporary residence” their mother explained. “Our house was damaged by floods” their father said. “Until we put up a stable house, we hope to live here” their mother said again. “But then why do you all go up the river every afternoon?” I asked. “That is to bring leaves” Their mother said.

“We spend the night close to the land in which our house was” Their father said. “What a life!” somebody said. We looked around to see a temple returnee eaves dropping. “Father shall we drop them at their ferry?” The eldest girl asked.

“Sure, sure Ganga” Her father replied to the aptly named daughter. They invited even the temple returnee to join us. We moved slowly. The journey from Pallimulla ferry to Gorakapola ferry was a matter of few minutes. We sat on the raised portion of the peddah boat. Ganga helped her father in rowing. Sumana gave them some lovi fruits which were inside her secret frock pocket all this time.

“Kamani, Sunil and myself had not thought that far, therefore once getting down we collected some kottamba fruits and gave them. “Something is better than nothing” the temple returnee quipped. “Where did you all go?” All those who were waiting for the canoe to take them to the opposite bank of the river asked us. “We went on a trip” we explained.

“We shall let you know a date to go to Piliyandala with us” the second girl Nadee said. She deserved that name. “Don’t forget to inform me children. After all I could become your chaperone.” the temple returnee said. “Not a bad idea” Sumana agreed.

“Provided she keeps her month shut after the trip” Kamani commented. On Tuesday I was awaiting the arrival of my father. He promised to bring me the toy boat I had asked him.

“Did you bring the toy boat?” My first question the moment he came. “See what is inside” He gave me a parcel. “It is a book and not a toy boat” I comp lained. “Yes, but there are a lot of boats inside” father said. The book contained the pictures of canoes, boats, ships, yachts, gondolas etc. etc. Each picture had a relevant description.

“But I asked you for a toy dwelling boat” I started to cry. “If you don’t like it I’ll exchange it tomorrow” my father said. I got a sudden desire to keep the book. “Why should I lose it?” I can share the contents of it with my friends and with my new found friends also. After all they are the boat dwellers” I thought.

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