Human Protectors

Why some dare to cross lines

Wade waters

Conquer seas

With the intention of

Protecting Gods (or and even Goddesses).

Do Gods (even Goddesses)

Need humans as their

Protectors or

Why cannot they do it themselves?

Why not leave humans to protect

Their own kind

From murderers to rapists to wife beaters

To you name it.

What is our role here

Sometimes I wonder

Is it

To protect Gods (or even Goddesses)

Or

Protect our own kind.

This was something I wrote a few years ago and thought of reposting again after yesterday's bombing in Sri Lanka.

සිංහලයා මෝඩයා කැවුම් කන්න සූරයා

Kaum (කැවුම්) is an essential item in the Sinhalese New Year celebration.

The people of yesteryears knew Kaum is not only a sweetmeat but can be turned into lifesaving drug too.

Well before the western medicine identified the value and usefulness of Penicillin, people in this land knew about it and put to good use of it without calling the substance any particular name.

The first Kauma made according to the auspicious time during the Sinhala New Year Celebrations time is dedicated to Fruit flys (කොදුරු කැවුම) and hung in the kitchen for days until the surface of it turns into light greenish.

Fruit flies are essential in this transformation and with them, they bring in the Penicillium (ˌpɛnɪˈsɪliəm) ascomycetous fungi.

The fungi grow on the surface of the Kauma and turning the dark brown colour of the surface of it into a light greenish in a few days’ time.


Once that process is completed, the Kauma is then kept in a safe place and use as a First Aid, where all cuts and bruises are treated with by squeezing a few drops of oil into the affected area.

There is another saying concocted by the British that Sinhalese people are a foolish lot and they are only capable of eating Kaum.

සිංහලයා මෝඩයා කැවුම් කන්න සූරයා.

This saying came into being during battles with the British.

While searching bodies of the Sinhalese soldiers died in battles, the British have discovered that everyone was carrying a small pouch containing a few Kaum, so they presumed that Sinhalese were no good soldiers and only fond of eating Kaum, even during battles, not knowing that those pouches were indeed their life saving First Aid kit in the battlefields.

So Kaum is not only a sweetmeat prepared on a very special occasion and also a lifesaving medicine for the people of this land.

New Facilities at MMC

Makumbura was another sleepy village along the High-level (Colombo – Batticaloa Highway) road a few decades ago but suddenly came under the spotlight, when the Kottawa-Galle Highway (E01) was planned.

Makumbura got the first Entry / Exit point to the E01 Expressway then and everything started to change rapidly.

While the construction was going on, another place a kilometre away from the Entry / Exit point was commissioned to have a weighbridge to weigh in the heavy construction materials being brought in for the project.

Once the construction was nearing completion, the weighing facility got another life.

With the help of Japanese government grant, it was converted to a new Multi-model transport hub, the first of its kind in the country and seven more to be followed soon around the country.

With this novel concept of Multi-Modal Transport Hub, Makumbura got another facility.

In an era where everyone is concerned about the wellbeing, the newly laid Walking Path and exercise pad behind the main terminal building is the icing on the cake, so to say.

The Walking Path is well paved and well lit as well.

The rainwater drain adjoining the path is a good place for those who love Bird Watching as many marshy land birds and a few migratory birds can be seen there.

With the impending rains, the water level is to rise and so will be the bird population.

And preserving its serenity will be everyone’s responsibility.