The Moment: "Issara man giya" with "Twenty Years Ago"

It's a place when you're in, you want to get out; but when you're out, you want to get in.

The School.

This nice song sung by Sunil Edirisinghe has a wonderful rhythm, and if you take the original, the instrumental combination was amazing too. (Is it udakkiya?)The song was talking about the memories which combined with the school days.

ඉස්සර මං ගිය පාසැල ඇරිලා
පුංචි පැටව් පෙරහැරෙ එනවා
හේවිසි ගහගෙන හූ හඬ දීගෙන
ලන්ද පුරා දුව පැන එනවා
මේ දරු දැරියන් නොදුටුව දෑසින්
එක දරුවෙක් තනිවී එනවා

It was the school that I went long time back. School is over and little kids running all the way here and there making their signature noises; shouting, whistling and drumming. But among them, there's a one child, no one had noticed, all alone.

ගහකොළ සෙළවී ඔහු දෙස බැලුවා
බිම් මල් හිනැහී හිස වැනුවා
ඒ දඬුමංකඩ තිත්ත පැටවු රැළ
ඔහුගේ සුවඳට ඉව කෙරුවා
මේ විසිතුරු හැර කොතැනක යන්නද
පුංචි දෙපා එක තැන රැඳුනා

Nature smiled, nodded and looked at him. The little fish gang in the pond sensed his smell. How could someone left seeing this nature's beauty? So his little feet stayed there.

ඉර මල පිපිලා දොඹ ගහ මුදුනේ
නෙළුම් රටාවකි තණ ගොල්ලේ
නීල කොබෙයි රැළ පේලි සැදී හිඳ
මුතු ඇහිඳියි මදටිය ගාලේ
ගිනි මද්දහනේ කුසගිනි නොදැනී
තාමත් ඔහු මේ වන නිල්ලේ

Bloomed flowers, grass garden and birds parade. Mid noon, burning hot sun and empty stomach. But he is still there with the greenery, feeling no hungry.

පොත් පිටු අතරේ නොරැඳෙන දෑසින්
වන වදුලේ අසිරිය දකිනා
ගම් දරුවන් මැද මේ දරු පැටියා
මගේ නෙතට කඳුලක් නැගුවා
ඔහුට මුවාවී පාසැල් යන්නේ
මා දැයි නිකමට මට සිතුනා

The same eyes that not keen to wandering through the books, is seeing the amazing scenic beauty in green forest. Among the other children, this little kid make me a tear in my eye. Because just this thought, it was me who go to school through hiding behind of him.

ගායනය : විශාරද සුනිල් එදිරිසිංහ
සංගීතය : එච්.එම්.ජයවර්ධන
පද රචනය : කුමාරදාස සපුතන්ත්‍රී

Music by H.M Jayawardene
Lyrics by Kumaradasa Saputhanthri

I think this song is a expanded version of Mahagama Sekara's words (I couldn't find it right now, guess it should be his) and summarized version of the movie Taare Zamin Par.

"Life was so much easier twenty years ago". This statement is true in two perspectives, either for someone's self, or as a whole community. Yes, as a society 20 years ago human life was not complicated. If we define the term 'complicated', people take it in so many ways. As we discussed in 'Have we become slaves or masters of machine?' post, the term complicated in this context, have a new meaning. Is it complicated, or are we being slaves. Being slaves of the technology. As a person, surely life is easier for anyone 20 years back in time, as he is not carrying even quarter of the weight of this world that he is carrying right now.

This song which sung by Kenny Rogers talking about the things, he did twenty years ago in his hometown and turning for the future; today. It was a look back reminisce of young memories of a grown-up old man. But in a way, it is already passed 20 years after releasing this song. So the things mentioned in here are might be 40 years ago for us.

It's been a long time since I walked

Through this old town

But oh how the memories start to flow

And there's the old movie house

They finally closed it down

You could find me there every Friday night

Twenty years ago.

I worked the counter at the drugstore down the street

But nobody's left there I would know

On Saturday mornings that's where

All my friends would meet

You'd be surprised to know what a dime would buy

Twenty years ago.

All my memories from those days come gather round me

What I'd give if they could take me back in time

It almost seems like yesterday

Where do the good times go?

Life was so much easier twenty years ago.

I guess I should stop by Mr. Johnson's hardware store

His only son was my friend Joe

But he joined the army back in 1964

How could we know he would never come back

Twenty years ago.

If you lived in all your younger years in a place and you have to move on for your adulthood for another place, whether the memories in old place are good or bad, you will take it most precious. If you ever had a chance to visit again that old place, surely all the memories from those days would come gather round you.

So this author, he had a visit and the memories started to flow all over himself. He sees how the things had changed. Shocked by the closed movie hall and recollect how he spent his time in there those days.

Surely if someone had a chance, no one would forget to visit the place where the first hard time teenage earnings took place. But when you see that no colleagues were found to be there of your days, you will feel heartbroken how the world is moving.

Of course never would misses to meet your old friends. Yes, they may be no longer lived in here. But their shadows may haunted in the places you all used to gather around. And funnily you'd remember the things you bought those days, that could never be bought to the same price today.

If it was a time that the country is in a war, it would be a one part of your entire life; the things you see, you heard; a big part of your memories. Victory or loss, it would be memories, lessons learned.

So what would you do if there's a possibility to go back in time? Would you go? What would you give a away to grab that offer?

Time is moving. World is changing. It may be like yesterday. Life was so much easier, twenty years ago.