Madushani

In November 2005, Madushani (second from left in the piece “Totamuna”) wrote her story in a letter, which has been translated here. Her words also appear painted to the left of the family in this portrait.

Madushani’s story

It was my father who worked his life away to look after us selling fish in the midday sun.
He sacrificed his life to feed the family working his guts out.

I am a sixteen year old schoolgirl living in Totamuna area of Matara. My father was the breadwinner for our family of two elder sisters, one elder brother, my younger sister, my mother and me. Fruit of my father’s hard work, was the House he built for us. It was a complete house with everything. We even had a wall around the garden. My brother and two elder sisters had completed their education and were awaiting employment.

As we lived next to the sea, the automatic choice for many young people in the area was to join the fisheries industry. My brother was a suitable contender for a job at sea. My sister and I were determined to continue our education. We loved education and were studying together at every chance we had. We had a fulfilled life our education gave us an insight in to the realities of life.

Most people of Totamuna were fishermen. It was the ocean which fed us. The whole of our lives revolved around the sea. It was the sea which fed us. We had a very happy life here.

Yet, in few seconds some act of fate changed our happy and content lives for ever. 26th of December was the Unduwap Full Moon day. Everyone was going about their lives like any other day. But the ocean came ashore in an instant. To be precise, it was at about 9.15 in the morning when that fateful wave engulfed all our lives.

I could not believe what had happened. Everywhere I looked I could only see our destroyed houses. The only thing I could hear were the cries of the people of my village. The wave that came ashore took back everything and everyone to sea. Everyone who got caught ended up being utterly helpless. We lost my aunt and her two infant sons, my mother’s sister and her son and thirty seven other relatives. Along  with them we lost many of the villagers we always shared our lives with. The idyllic village of Totamuna was turned into a graveyard in one single moment. Even to this day, village of Totamuna is an overgrown barren land.

For me, a person who had never experienced such horrors ever before, it was a huge devastation and sorrow. Later I got to know that we were not alone. There were many other people in other parts of the world who had suffered just like us. Much later I learned the disastrous wave that changed our lives for ever was called a “tsunami”.

All my dreams of becoming a useful citizen to my country were shattered in an instant. We had lost our home and everything and the rest of our property. Everything we had was destroyed. Only the foundation of the house and the lavatory are left. Each time I look at the house, my eyes fill with tears.

Now we live in a small house propped up with wooden planks and a tin roof. There is no room here for all of us. But, with difficulty, at least some of us are living here. My brother and two sisters had to go and live with some of our relatives.

I am taking my Ordinary Level exams this year. Even with thousands of frustrations and problems, I am determined to fulfil my educational ambitions. I want to achieve the best I can. At the moment all our family members are in severe distress and frustration. We have no place to call home. My father has no work. My brother is also unemployed. The boats and catamarans he worked in were all destroyed.  We do not know how we are going to live with the meagre income we have.

The government of Sri Lanka had given us nothing. No one wants to take responsibility for our lives. We live temporary lives as refugees. Our fate has changed completely. It is only you we can rely on.

If you can help me to further my education and help to rebuild a home for us, and ultimately to rebuild our lives again, we would be extremely grateful.

S.S. Madushani.