Poem for a rainy day

A lot of our community has been feeling exhausted, overwhelmed, and just worn down the last few weeks – in some parts of the world, a new wave of the pandemic has brought fear and terror to our families and communities. For others, this is the season for exams and end-of-school-year rituals, marking an end to an unusual year.

This week’s newsletter is a brief escape: Dharini Ganesharaja, 23, from Colombo, Sri Lanka, shares a postcard: a dreamy photo from a rainy day and a poem she wrote, inspired by it.

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Old man in a hat

A wilted frangipani

Gift of life well-lived.

Gift for his lover

A fallen frangipani

A new door to life.

A fallen flower

Adorning his turtledove

The jewel of love.

The story behind the photo

This picture was taken at Lunuganga, Sri Lanka. Lunuganga is the country home of the acclaimed Sri Lankan architect Geoffery Bawa.

Geoffery Bawa has inspired me since childhood and nobody has taught me to embrace nature as he did through his buildings. I have always felt his buildings were more than just concrete and paint. They say walls have ears and doors have eyes, I don’t know if it’s true but when it comes to Bawa buildings it is most certainly true the buildings speak a language of their own. If you are a true lover of Bawa, you can hear the building sing poetry and whisper stories to you.

You don’t always fall in love with a person, sometimes you fall in love with poetry, art, a postcard from a stranger, or spaces — I experienced that feeling for the first time at Lunuganga. Over the years, Lunuganga has inspired many artists and writers including the famous novelist Michael Ondaatje. The garden has inspired me in many ways and it has something to give to everyone who visits the place, and I consider this picture and the poem as a gift to me from Lunuganga. The garden is truly a gift that keeps giving.

Last year in September I went to Lunuganga for an art installation that was organized as a part of Bawa’s 100th birthday celebration. After the event was over I went looking for my colleague and I spotted the super grey sky which I thought matched the colour of the sculpture. It was a sight hard to miss and I wanted to take a picture of the sculpture and the sky together before it poured in buckets. The moment I took my phone out the old man in his hat took a lazy stroll into my frame and wouldn’t move an inch — I was very annoyed that I couldn’t take the picture I had in my mind, but I had left anyway as it started to rain heavily. Later, when I came home and was going through my gallery, this picture caught my eye — the fallen frangipani relaxing in a bed of grass and the old man in a hat gave me a feeling of contentment. I was suddenly grateful that the man walked into my frame and gave a sense of life to what would have otherwise been a grey and gloomy image.

Meet Dharini

Dharini works in the field of communication and also moonlights as a kathak dancer. “I feel like I am in my element when I am dancing,” she says. She loves to read and write love stories and haiku. She also collects postcards and her collection of postcards from around the world is her most prized possession.

You’re the kind of person who finds stories everywhere – the stranger on the bus, the man in your photo, a notebook a colleague left behind in your desk drawer. Tell us what’s inspiring you right now.

I’ve always had a penchant for storytelling and see stories everywhere. I churn stories inside my head all the time. I create stories for strangers I met on the train, the colleague who I know through a notebook he left behind, the lovers I saw at the bakery all have happy endings and live only inside my head. I sometimes turn [their stories] into poetry like [I did with] this old man in the picture.

You just started a new job, you have lots of big plans for dreams and goals you want to achieve – tell us a little more? What’s on the horizon for you, and what are you looking forward to?

I currently work as a trainee for an International Organization, and I am part of a team that works on rural development, gender, and culture. My field of interest is the intersection of culture and gender and I aim to build a career in the same. I hope my Masters in International Social and Public Policy from LSE will help me achieve this.

My new job is my dream job; I have worked really hard to come here and I feel like every little step I took in the past has helped me to see the big picture today. I am grateful that I trusted my instincts and took all those steps. There is still a long way to go and the future looks a little blurry. Studying at LSE, immersing in diverse cultures, travelling to new places, and working with inspiring people is all that I dream about, but with the current situation all of that seems impossible. But I have always found light at the end of the tunnel. I am going to keep working towards my small checklist, and I am hopeful whatever is mine will come to me.

What has life in the pandemic looked like for you?

I had planned everything for the next five years and the pandemic decided to crash land on my plans, but the pandemic has taught me to go with the flow and embrace everything that comes my way. I feel less burdened without my five-year plan, taking it one day at a time.

What’s something that you’re excited about and something that’s keeping you up at night right now?

I am excited for the infinite possibilities the future beholds. I am excited to move to a new country in 4 months and live on my own. I am excited that I am slowly turning all my small dreams and aspirations into reality.

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