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Appreciations Shooting
star said it all I wish I was
there to pay my last respects in person. As he is laid to rest,
my fondest memories of the times we spent together during my childhood
crystallize. I know his family will miss him deeply, as he was such
a warm, supportive person, and he was also lucky to have the same
reciprocity from them. Whenever I
smell a pipe, I shall think of him. Also when I see an Asahi Pentax
camera. I remember vividly our holiday in China Bay, Trincomalee,
in April 1973. The trip to the Somawathie Chaitya, to which Uncle
Nanda navigated unerringly through uncleared jungle, waterholes
and game paths. I understand that now there is a road to the place,
with electric lights, but I remember how we spent more time pulling
his jeep out of the mud than making progress then. The other moment
that will always be in my mind is when we were all sitting on the
verandah of the Petroleum Corporation bungalow and saw a shooting
star. Somebody remarked that a shooting star meant that a prince
had died. The next day we learned that Dudley Senanayake had passed
away. Surely, if
we look at the sky tonight, we will see another. I wish you were
here to see your grandchildren Thathie being
from a family of planters followed in the footsteps of his elder
brother, after completing his studies at St.Thomas' College, Matale.
He excelled in various sports in school, especially cricket and
boxing. A rigorous
training made him quite knowledgeable and hard working. His superiors
found in him, the makings of an efficient planter and without hesitation
recommended and transferred him to larger plantations from time
to time. There was keen
competition even during those days to become a planter. He was dynamic,
and mastered the techniques of all aspects of tea and rubber planting
and manufacture. It did not take much time for him to prove that
he was capable of managing large plantations. After a short
period of five years, he was put in charge of plantations of over
thousand hectares of tea and rubber. During this
period, the labour force comprised mainly Tamils. He worked with
them well and looked after their interests. He was conversant in
Tamil and they loved him very much. He gave priority
to the wellbeing of the labour force downtrodden by the Europeans.
Thathie's kindness and large-heartedness were appreciated by all
who knew him. His love, my
mother, was from the land of gems, from the well-known family of
Delgoda from Ratnapura. As a loving husband and father of two daughters
and a son, he was proud of his family. Today, I wish he were here
to see his five beautiful grandchildren. To his brothers
and sisters, Thathie was the darling of the family. They were proud
of him. He was also prepared to make any sacrifice for them. Thathie's sudden
death on December 1, 1994 created a vacuum that can never be filled,
leaving his family like a ship without a rudder. He had carefully
planned his life after retirement. But alas, it was not to be. Thathie
was a God-fearing man who never missed his morning prayers before
setting out to work everyday. Specially qualified
in the preparation of nurseries and the propagation of V.P. and
bud-rubber plants, at the time of his death, he had more than 40
years experience and was a recognised Visiting Agent for many large
plantations. The vast areas he replanted in the low-country plantations
will undoubtedly bear testimony to the invaluable services rendered
by him to the industry and the country at large. Graceful queen
Our family was
a garden beautiful and decorous, If I were to
be kidnapped and slain by my enemies, My heart sinks
deeper and deeper, Sister, my dear
sister Grace. An
officer and peacemaker In all he did,
either in the line of official duty, or in his personal life, the
one-time Navy Commander exemplified all the characteristics of professionalism.
Everything about him spoke of integrity, dignity, competence and
commitment to duty - the classic hallmarks of a true professional.
Whether in uniform or out of it, he was remarkable for his rational
approach, his imperturbability and his ability to always stay focused
on the objective before him. I knew him
well and associated with him often in his capacity as Navy Commander
at a critical time for the country. I admired very much, both his
modesty and the courteous and dignified way in which he behaved.
There is not the slightest doubt that at this particular moment
of our history, Ananda would have been a tremendous help in the
process of transformation from war to peace. It is a matter
for wonder that some of the staunchest proponents of peace have
come from among the ranks of the military; persons whose lifetime
of service was that of defeating the enemy through the force of
arms. Ananda was
one of those exceptional men trained in warfare who was in fact
a peacemaker. The cultural well springs of compassion and tolerance
which inspired his life would have been foremost in shaping this
side of his character. Examples of such men are rare indeed and
can be perceived only in epic terms. One such image which enters
the mind as one reflects on persons like Ananda, is that told of
Arjuna in the Bagawat Gita and the agony he endures in the fields
of Kurukshetra before the battle with his brothers. His actions
would in all possibility result in the killing of his close relatives.
But duty and service cannot be denied. So thinking
of Ananda and his life at this time reminds me not only of the great
service he performed for us all, but also of the sad drama of the
past that we had to live through, now fortunately at an end. Only
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