Ifirst heard about the veranda beach from an elderly man who invited me to spend a few days in his house. When I reached his house it was getting dark. I found him sitting in his favourite hansiputuva (armchair) looking at the distant smoky blue hills. The air was heavy with the smell of wild flowers. The last rays of sunlight were disappearing beyond the hills.
“Did you find it difficult to find my house?” he asked me trying to get up from his chair.
“Not really, but I had to seek guidance from a few people at the bus stand.”
“Do you have any plans for the few days you are going to stay with me?”
Before I could answer his question, he asked me whether I would like spend some time in his veranda beach. I really did not know what a veranda beach was, so I remained silent for a moment. He said, “Don’t worry. You are already in my veranda beach.”
No sign of the sea
I looked around but there was no sign of the sea or beach. I politely reminded him that there was no sea beach to be seen. He laughed and told me that veranda beach was the veranda or the front porch of his house. It took some time for me to realise that an ordinary porch could be turned into a place of adventure with a little bit of imagination.
The veranda opened a window to the world outside. It also taught me a life-lesson that could not possibly be learnt from a textbook. What is more, I began to see wonder s of nature while sitting in his veranda beach. When we were staring into the dusk, the outside world was undergoing mighty changes. Farmers and estate workers were returning home carrying their implements. Some of them were plodding their weary way while the others were hurrying home to spend the night with their wives and children.
Hopes and dreams
While the sun was setting behind the hills, nocturnal creatures began to appear one by one. While bats were looking for food, crickets were making irritating sounds. Soon the other members of his family came to the veranda beach. Small children began to chase after fireflies and the grown-up children wanted to listen to stories about ghosts.
On the following morning, the children got up early to play in the compound while my friend was seated in his easy chair in the veranda beach. A pretty girl served us with hoppers, plantains and steaming cups of tea. I observed that there were unexpressed rules of beach behaviour that everyone seemed to have understood. While the children were running about in the compound, the adults were engaged in playing carom and other indoor games.
While playing, they discussed politics, domestic problems, and exchanged their opinions on important issues.
Late at night, the varanda beach took on a serious look. While the children were counting sheep, the adults were engaged in muter conversations.
Social injustice
Sometimes, my friend confided in me his unhappiness about social injustice for he had not still received his pension. He was also unhappy with the progress of his children’s education. He wanted them to do well in their studies and find employment. “Life is short and we have to make the best of it,” he said.
While spending long hours in the veranda beach, we watched the moon shining above the hills. The stars were blinking. I remembered an old saying, “Aim high. If you fail to reach the moon, you will end up with the stars.” All of us have hopes and aspirations, but sometimes we fail to reach our goals. The veranda beach taught us how to stand against strong winds. We knew that such winds would not last long. You can definitely expect a cool breeze after a storm.
The veranda beach also taught me how to enjoy beauty in a weed grown strong and revel in the bud turning to bloom. What is more, the veranda beach is your own place to be yourself than to have a place to go and spend your precious time and hard-earned money.
Wonderful rain
One day, while we were sitting in the veranda beach, it started raining. We knew that rain was definitely one of the natural elements. Rain is something wonderful because you can see it, hear it, feel it and even smell it. Whether you like it or not, rain comes and goes. When the rain starts, adults run for shelter. At least in villages, children play in the rain.
While cats and dogs try to avoid rain, buffaloes welcome the showers. Frogs come out from their hiding places and run about when it rains. One day when I was walking down a crowded street with a foreigner, it started raining heavily. While I tried to get hold of an umbrella, my friend started dancing in the street shouting, “Wonderful rain!”
One morning we watched how farmers and estate workers were walking to their workplaces. Most of them were chatting and laughing. We heard their full-throated voices distinctly. Even after they disappeared from our view, their voices continued to ring in our ears. We also saw a bridge a few yards down the road. The stream seemed to encircle the village as if it was marking the boundaries. Some children were racing along the bridge making a gratifying rattle.
My short stay in the varanda beach convinced me that there is a great bond between man and nature. However, man sometimes tries to destroy nature for his own benefit not realising the repercussions. Natural disasters such as tsunami, floods and sea erosions are some of the punishments meted out by nature. However much man is intelligent, he does not learn from his mistakes.
