April 2009

MAYA PUWATH

Volume 5 Issue 2 –April, 2009

Hello Everyone!

It is time again for celebration and prosperity; the time of milk rice,

sweet meats, and hospitality with overflowing abundance. It is also

the time to renew our friendships and relationships and be grateful

for people, love and blessings in our lives; the time to look back

and let go of bad tidings and look forward to taking forth the good things; the time to forgive and forget. It is

time to be united and forgo the differences. It is Aluth Avurudu or Puththandu again. Here’s wishing all our

readers, your loved ones, family members a wonderful and a joyous, happy and a prosperous Sinhala and

Tamil New Year!

We are dedicating this month’s issue of the Newsletter for the topic for

Aluth Avurudu/Puththandu. Even though we live far away from our homeland

this is a special occasion in which we have a common ground to celebrate

as Sri Lankans. In these trying times it is good to hear how everyone made

this time of the year special in this land away from home.

This Avurudu topic will be something that will appear every year in our

Newsletters. So make sure to make a note of all the activities that took

place during this festive season and share it with the rest of the Mayans in

the next Avurudu issue.

In this issue, you will also see news about the upcoming 5

AGM of

MGCAANA, which is to be held on May 23

, 2009 in Des Moines, Iowa.

As usual, it falls on the Memorial-Day weekend and we would be delighted

to have you join us. The AGM is to be hosted by fellow Mayan Neranjika Dissanayake and her husband San-

jaya Amaratunga . We hope that many of you will make the effort to attend the AGM. It is only your pres-

ence that will make this get together a special occasion. For more details about the AGM please refer to

later pages of this issue.

We look forward to seeing you at the AGM and wish all our readers a Happy and a Prosperous Sinhala and

Tamil New Year!

Editorial Committee: Nazrana Cafforr, Priyanka Jayakody, Dakshika Bandaranayake, Pamuditha Mahadiulwewa

Dhammapada :

“This world is blind-because few are here

who see within, just as few birds break

free from the nest to go see the heavens.”

~ Lord Buddha

My first new year in USA

I was excited to know that Sri Lankans in Lubbock were organizing "Aluth Avurudu" celebrations every

year in April. I came to USA in January 2008 and I was floating in thoughts between Sri Lanka and USA at

that time. Hearing about this event therefore, made me extremely delightful. We are going to celebrate our

new year!!!!

I had thousand and one questions about it. But the answers for my questions made me very sad….may be

because I was new to this land and couldn’t figure out the way things were done.

"Are we going to have kotta pora game?" at was my first question. Oh yes! They told me. "But how are we

going to make those bars to play on?" That’s me again. "Well, we use a small bench to play". What? A

bench? But that’s not high enough! "Hmmm, but we don’t have any other way.

Then, "Are we playing Kana mutti?" Yes of course. "Do we have a place to buy a mutti"?

Are you crazy? They looked at me madly. "We buy a piñata from Wal-Mart" .Then, can we put muddy wa-

ter or colored water inside it? That was me again. Oh no. It’s already filled with candy. Hmmmm…. Kana

mutti with candy. That sounds weird to me.

I went to see another friend to know more about the event. "Where are we making the fire with the tradi-

tional three stone stove to boil milk?" Her answer made me scared. "Come on… you have to learn the law in

USA. We can’t light a fire. They will sue us for attempting to make a wild fire. It’s prohibited to light fires

outside".

I came back to my apartment wondering how there can be a New Year celebration without boiling milk or

without fire crackers. Lubbock is like a semi desert. You can hardly find a tree here. Then what about this

wild fire?

Anyway we can do it in our apartment! I told my roommate about my idea. "ARE YOU NUTS?” The fire

alarm will go on and everybody will dial 911. The ambulance, the fire brigade and the police will be here in

a minute with their sirens screaming. Do you need such a mess here on New Year's day?"

And one more time I asked myself, "Why did I leave Sri Lanka and come to this strange land?" If only I

could fly back to my motherland to have fun during the New Year, and with that dream, wishing you all a

Happy and Prosperous Sinhala and Hindu New Year!!!

~ Hemalika Karunaratne

Mahamaya Girls’ College Alumnae Association of North America

2417 NE 20

Street, Renton, Washington 98056, U.S.A.

Website: www.mahamayaalumnina.org E-mail: [email protected]

Notice for the 5

Annual General Meeting

You are hereby notified that the Fifth Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the members of Mahamaya Girls’

College Alumnae Association of North America (MGCAANA) to be held on:

Saturday, May 23

, 2009 at 12.00 p.m. (CST)

Waukee Public Library

950 Warrior Lane, Waukee, IA 50263

The Agenda of the Meeting

1. Welcome speech by the President

2. Speeches by the Board of Directors and Officers

3. Presentation of the Annual Report by the Secretary

4. Presentation of the Accounting Report by the Treasurer

5. Election of new Directors for the year 2009-2010

6. Election of members for various committees

7. Any other matter

8. Vote of thanks

Accommodation and Transportation:

If you are planning to attend the Fifth Annual General Meeting and need further information about accommo-

dation and/or transportation, please visit our website at www.mahamayaalumnina.org or e-mail us at ma-

hamaya_alumnae@yahoo.com.

French Book Project Phase II: Heartwarming Efforts

In last month’s issue we told you the story of the French book donations and the efforts of Kishani Martin

and her husband to take over two hundred books to Sri Lanka. Here are some pictures that we missed from

last time. Enjoy !

Himashinie Diyabalanage, long-time member and BOD of

MGCAANA visited the college during her visit to Sri Lanka in 2008

.The Principal, Mrs. Vithanachchi, greatly appreciated and com-

A few of the French books that were taken to Sri Lanka by our dedicated MGCAANA member Kishani Martin and her hus-

Dinner after the AGM:

Following the meeting, Neranjika Dissanayaka and her husband Sanjaya Amarathunga will be host-

ing a dinner at their residence. All the attendees, their spouses/fiancés, children, and family are cor-

dially invited for this social gathering. More information will be provided at the meeting.

Address of the Amarathunga residence:

16437, Oakbrook Dr,

Clive, Iowa 50325

● 515-987-3139 (Home) ● 515-988-2875(Cell)

Elections

Ballot forms and information about the AGM have been mailed to all our members. If you have not

received them for some unforeseen reason, please go to our website and use the electronic ballot for

voting. The information about the AGM is on our website. Ballot is available here:

http://www.mahamayaalumnina.org/ballot0910.php

Proxy Ballot

If you do not plan to attend the Annual General Meeting in person, please cast your proxy vote, sign,

and date the enclosed proxy ballot form and return it promptly to MGCAANA, 2417 NE 20

Street ,

Renton , WA - 98056, U.S.A. before May 18, 2009. If you will be present at the AGM, you may vote in

person, instead of by proxy.

All the ballot forms will be opened and counted at the Annual General Meeting by an appointed official.

We assure you that utmost confidentiality will be observed in the voting process whether you vote online,

using the ballot form, or in person at the AGM.

If you have any questions please email us at: mahamaya_alumnae@yahoo.com.

We, the Board of Directors and Officers of MGCAANA, thank you very much for your continuous sup-

port and hope to see you at the Fourth Annual General Meeting.

Board of Directors and the Executive Committee, 2008/2009

MGCAANA

My first new year in USA

I was excited to know that Sri Lankans in Lubbock were organizing "Aluth Avurudu" celebrations every

year in April. I came to USA in January 2008 and I was floating in thoughts between Sri Lanka and USA at

that time. Hearing about this event therefore, made me extremely delightful. We are going to celebrate our

new year!!!!

I had thousand and one questions about it. But the answers for my questions made me very sad….may be

because I was new to this land and couldn’t figure out the way things were done.

"Are we going to have kotta pora game?" That was my first question. Oh yes! They told me. "But how are

we going to make those bars to play on?" That’s me again. "Well, we use a small bench to play". What? A

bench? But that’s not high enough! "Hmmm, but we don’t have any other way.

Then, "Are we playing Kana mutti?" Yes of course. "Do we have a place to buy a mutti"?

Are you crazy? They looked at me madly. "We buy a piñata from Wal-Mart" .Then, can we put muddy wa-

ter or colored water inside it? That was me again. Oh no. It’s already filled with candy. Hmmmm…. Kana

mutti with candy. That sounds weird to me.

I went to see another friend to know more about the event. "Where are we making the fire with the tradi-

tional three stone stove to boil milk?" Her answer made me scared. "Come on… you have to learn the law in

USA. We can’t light a fire. They will sue us for attempting to make a wild fire. It’s prohibited to light fires

outside".

I came back to my apartment wondering how there can be a New Year celebration without boiling milk or

without fire crackers. Lubbock is like a semi desert. You can hardly find a tree here. Then what about this

wild fire?

Anyway we can do it in our apartment! I told my roommate about my idea. "ARE YOU NUTS?” The fire

alarm will go on and everybody will dial 911. The ambulance, the fire brigade and the police will be here in

a minute with their sirens screaming. Do you need such a mess here on New Year's day?"

And one more time I asked myself, "Why did I leave Sri Lanka and come to this strange land?" If only I

could fly back to my motherland to have fun during the New Year, and with that dream, wishing you all a

Happy and Prosperous Sinhala and Hindu New Year!!!

~ Hemalika Karunaratne

French Book Project Phase II: Heartwarming Efforts

In last month’s issue we told you the story of the French book donations and the efforts of Kishani Martin

and her husband to take over two hundred books to Sri Lanka. Here are some pictures that we missed from

last time. Enjoy !

Himashinie Diyabalanage, long-time member and BOD of

MGCAANA visited the college during her visit to Sri Lanka in 2008

A few of the French books that were taken to Sri Lanka by our dedicated MGCAANA member Kishani Martin and her husband.

A Publication of the Mahamaya Girls’ College Alumni Association of North America

Editorial Committee– Priyanka Jayakody, Nazrana Caffoor, Dakshika Bandaranayake, Pamuditha Mahadiulwewa