In late March this year, about 40 Sri Lankan doctors, domiciled in various parts of the world, all of them University of Colombo Medical Faculty graduates (batch of 1973), met for a reunion in Australia. They held a scientific meeting at a hotel in Brisbane on March 27, which featured a booklet of the medical papers presented by some of them.
One of the pages at the end of the booklet, featured the song below.
They contain poignant words - a migrant mother releasing her children to a new land. They also contain memories and deep-seated longing for their motherland carried within the heart of all migrants. The words of introduction and the song are by Dr. Hiranthi Walpola, nee Jayasuriya.
Australia, we give you our children – a migrant mother’s song by Hiranthi Walpola
This is a song and not a poem, so please read it as such; It was written in a nostalgic mood in 1991. My gift to Australia are my two girls, now grown young women, who see themselves as members of one human family where irrelevant boundaries of race, religion and nationality are dissolved.
My heart ever longs for that blessed land,
Of jewelled seas and sparkling sand;
Whispering jungles and hills clad with tea,
Sun filled days so happy and free
We left loving arms and voices so dear,
A beloved green isle with ways familiar;
Came to a brown land so wide and so bare;
It promised our children a future so fair.
Chorus
Australia, we give you our children,
More precious than rubies or gold.
Take them with pride, surround them with love,
Our children in your heart please hold.
The sweet voice of Lanka is calling to me
Its tender arms reach across the sea;
But our young ones future is here it seems,
This golden land will fulfil their dreams
“A fair go” and dignity they’ll ask of you,
Equality, liberty and justice too;
Honour and glory they’ll bring to you,
With strong young hearts they’ll serve you true.
When my days are o’er and my spirit is free
I’ll come to you Lanka, please wait for me.
Let peace reign forever in my homeland, I pray
As compassion and love forever holds sway.
Our children will cherish that land far away,
Nurture its heritage with pride everyday.
These brown limbed dark eyed children we say
Will be fair dinkum true blue Aussie one day. |
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