That Avurudu feeling
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As Avurudu rolls around it’s that time of the year when we all get to take a little breather from our hectic lives, relax at home without feeling too guilty about it and do the rounds visiting relatives we haven’t seen in months. It’s also a month for traditions and nostalgia, and this week the Mirror Magazine speaks to some of our young readers about what makes the Avurudu holiday a special one for them.
Read on to find out what holiday memories and plans you share with them.
Pathanchali Premamchandra, 21, finds new year a time for not just family, but also friends and sometimes even strangers too who bond over food, laughter, and all things good.
“It’s a time to party it up, reflect and experience new things while enjoying the old or just relax,” she says. “Simply put, the New Year is best served Sri Lankan-style. This year I’m hoping to keep it simple and spend more time with the people I love the most- my family.”
Roma Vedamuttu, 19, will spend her holidays pacing herself for first year university exams in May. “Avurudu for me is spending time with family and a mini break before exams,” she says. “The smell of the sweet meats that fill the house during Avurudu and the idea of getting to go shopping is something that I look forward to during April despite the fact that I have always had exams to think of in May. I use the holiday as an excuse to relax before exams and spend time with the people I may not spend much time with during the rest of the year.”
Sajini Ratnayake, 21, will play truant during the holidays- “for me it’s a vacation to travel without feeling guilty about missing lectures,” she grins. “This year I’m planning to go to Dubai with my family!”
With similar travel plans is Geshan Wimaladharma, 21, whose favourite thing about Avurudu is the annual family trip they all take during the holidays. Geshan’s family has done this for as long as he can remember and that’s why he also says “childhood reminiscences of avurudu are what make it special. The festive mood has been engraved so deeply in to our bones that even now with our busy and hectic life styles the smell of avurudu brings happiness and excitement.”
Ravini Srilal, 19, spends a more traditional Avurudu with her family and neighbours at home. ‘Avurudu is all about goodwill and warmth. For me, it’s a time to celebrate with my family. We send plates of delicious Avurudu treats to neighbours and relatives and they return the gesture of kindness. This year for me it will be a special celebration because I’ll be spending it with my brother after four years. I’m hoping to commence my higher studies later on this year, too, so there’s a lot to look forward to after the holidays.”
Sung Kwan Park, 20, has lived in Sri Lanka for most of his life though he has now moved back to South Korea for university. Sung remembers the Sri Lankan new year clearly (“why wouldn’t I, it involves food!” he laughs). “My dad and I would visit his factory on the day after and there would be a big celebration organized by the staff there. We were never short of traditional Sri Lankan sweets during the holidays either-although they were kind of wasted on me as I don’t have much of a sweet tooth,” he grins. “It’s really very nice that people celebrate it on such a large scale and meet friends and family. One of the things I miss about Sri Lanka right now for sure!”
Chamal Mediwaka (20)’s family meets at their grandparents’ for a few days of family time, catching up, exchanging new year gifts and of course, for the yummy avurudu goodies. “This time around the routine would be the same,” he says. “And we have a cricket world cup for ourselves and no one could ask for any better gift.” For Sandarangi Perera, 21, it’s more of the same. “I’ve spent April 14 at my grandma’s house for as long as I can remember. The entire family always comes over- the cousins and uncles and aunts- and all of us just spend the whole day together and we have the best time!”
For Sandani Wickramathilake, 21, this year’s Avurudu will be a quiet time for reflection and remembering the father she lost last year. “This is our first avurudu since thaaththi passed away so I doubt we’d be celebrating much. We used to take our annual family trip somewhere in Sri Lanka and spend a crazy time together,” she remembers. “This time we’d just probably be sticking to the traditions and having a pretty low key Avurudu.”
Grace Wickremasinghe, 20, spends a multicultural Avurudu holiday hosting a lunch annually specifically for non-Sinhalese friends “as demanded by my parents-it’s one of my favourite family traditions,” she smiles. “It’s a time for loved ones, shopping, and to enjoy each other’s cultures.”
Navidu Samarakkodi, 18, sums it up best when he says “to be brutally honest, I think what’s most significant about the Avurudu holiday is the much-needed and well-deserved ‘holiday’ part of it. This naturally connects to the travel aspect of it – especially for globe-trotting enthusiasts, and relates to visiting distant family too. For us secondary school kids, though, it means just a few weeks before our IGCSEs, AS or A2 levels, hence revision – but of course it’s a balance of fun, family, play and work.” At the core of it though, is the ability of the Avurudu holiday to simply bring people together, he smiles. “Some of us may be waiting impatiently for it to pass, for any events we are involved in post-Avurudu. It also helps you genuinely appreciate our own culture and traditions – which we often take for granted. What matters though is how well you make use of the Avurudu season to make it dynamic and one to be remembered. For me, it’s a mix of all this.”