Every Sri Lankan, and almost every visitor to Sri Lanka, carries a longing for the place in some small form - hiraeth, the Welsh call it - wherever they go and whatever their background. It binds them however much the war and politics might try to divide them.
Interpretation
The quote expresses a deep, universal longing for one's homeland that transcends background and challenges.
Romesh Gunesekera's quote emphasizes the profound connection that individuals have with their homeland, Sri Lanka, regardless of their personal experiences or the political turmoil affecting it. The term 'hiraeth,' a Welsh word for a deep-seated homesickness, encapsulates this sentiment, suggesting that this longing creates a bond among the people, uniting them through their shared love and nostalgia for their home despite external conflicts.
In practice
This quote can be used in a speech about the importance of cultural heritage.
In the sense that writing is to retrieve the past and stop the passing of time, all writing is about loss. It's not nostalgia in the sense of yearning to bring back the past, but recognition of the erosion of things as you live.
I believe we create our own lives. And we create it by our thinking, feeling patterns in our belief system. I think we're all born with this huge canvas in front of us and the paintbrushes and the paint, and we choose what to put on this canvas.
There is a community of the spirit. Join it, and feel the delight of walking in the noisy street and being the noise. Drink all your passion, and be a disgrace. Close both eyes to see with the other eye.
Let us remember that a traitor may betray himself and do good that he does not intend. It can be so, sometimes.
It is our policy to steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the foreign world.
The world has been created for everyone's use, but you few rich are trying to keep it up for yourselves. For not merely the possession of the earth, but the very sky, the air, and the sea are claimed for the use of the rich few... The earth belongs to all, not just to the rich.
This is a steady, ceaseless process, impossible to contain as long as the economy driven by the endless accumulation of capital. The system may prolong its life by slowing down some of the activities which are wearing it out, but death always looms somewhere on the horizon.
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