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Sri Lanka Journal |
The Clown's DiaryMonday 28 March (Easter Monday)Monday morning was spent running around town and meeting with the Trincomalee division of Child Vision. I got the feeling that the Batticaloa division had spoken to them about Children's World International's work - always a good sign. They asked to take me to a camp that afternoon - I willingly agreed and arranged to meet them at my hotel at 3p.m. At 2-30 my translator, Antony, arrived and told me that he has arranged for a tuk-tuk to pick us up at 3 p.m. The two members of Child Vision arrived on time and together, all 4 of us, plus my equipment, crammed into one tuk-tuk and off we went. Upon arrival at the camp we saw that an N.G.O. called S.E.D.O.T. was already there. I remembered the situation in Batti and the inter-N.G.O. rivalry, so I introduced myself and told them about CWI, asked if they had a particular interest in children (which they did) and asked if it would interfere with their project if I ran some games here? They said that they were here dealing with housing conditions today, so my project would not interfere at all, and would I mind if they watched? Of course I didn't mind, and I started a performance and games session for over 70 children and around 15 adults. Some of the adults joined in the games, always a nice thing to see, and Antony practically ran the games single-handed. Renting a room in the St. Mary Hotel (which Antony's father runs and which is how I met Antony) was a very lucky move on my part. Both S.E.D.O.T. and Child Vision enjoyed the games. I asked Child Vision if they wanted to come with us to another camp. They wanted to, but due to other commitments, were unable to - this did have the advantage of leaving more room in the tuk-tuk! I am near the end of this tour, on the last day of field work. After today I will have no futher need of the parachute and it is my intention to pass it on to someone who I feel will use it and use it well. The perfect person would be Antony, but he is not an N.G.O. Even if he wanted to play every day, he has to make money. And that's when an idea occurred to me. Of course, I would have to run it past Bella first, then I'd have to see if Antony and Child Vision were into the idea. I rang Bella and checked the idea with her, and she happily agreed. I then spoke to Antony and the two Child Vision workers, and they too agreed. And so it was that before the Child Vision people had left, they agreed to meet with Antony for two days of learning all about parachute games, for which we have paid him the same price as we did for translating. I do not expect them, or Antony, to be up to the same standard as Children's World or Children's World International workers, but Antony is far and away the best native games organiser I've found in this country, and it's far better than the parachute ending up as a sun shade. (We were very surprised in Hikkaduwa in the southwest, when, at one temple, we found the same make of parachute being used for just sunshade purposes. We enquired about how they came to have it and they said it was in amoungst a load of supplies a N.G.O. had given them. They had no idea what it was!!! Luckly our tuk-tuk driver/translator there (though I use the word "tranlator" fairly lightly in this instance) loved the games, and when we told him that he must visit the temple and show them the real use of it, he seemed to jump at the chance. Also MC, Neil Butler's administrator, has agreed to help make sure this happens.) Child Vision and I then went our separate ways. Antony took me to the first camp that we had tried to work in last time I was in town - the one where the head man had been away. He was there this time and agreed to let us work. The camp was much smaller than most that I've worked in, and the only space big enough for parachute games was with in the grounds of the Hindu temple. I'm a practical sort of man (in this game,you have to be) so I always wear boots when going to camps, as you never know what sort of terrain you may have to traverse, So the excuse to remove boots due to holy ground was greatly appreciated. I performed my show successfully, and then, instead of running the games myself, I asked Antony to. All I did was supervise. I was impressed. He really has learnt well - all I had to do was point out silly little things of no great importance. It felt quite emotional, knowing that I'd finished the last show of the Mini-Tour - it seems a lifetime ago since that first show in a school in Hikkaduwa on 7th March. On our way back to town we stopped at a British war graves cemetery. As an ex-soldier I feel strongly about our fallen heroes and paid my respects in a military fashion, marching smartly up to them, saluting, having 3 minutes' silence, saluting again and then marching away. It may have looked quite strange to any onlookers, but it felt like the right thing to do. The condition of the graveyard is a credit to both the War Graves Commission and the people of Sri Lanka. Back at the hotel I packed, ate, showered and tried to contact Save the Children, who we have been trying to meet on the ground, unsuccessfully, ever since we arrived in Sri Lanka. At 7 p.m. my tuk-tuk arrived and I headed off to the train station, where I had a last minute meeting with another local N.G.O. This meeting was far from satisfactory, being held through an open window as the train left the station. It was a 12 hour overnight trip to Columbo, the capital of Sri Lanka. 
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CWI Tsunami Tour