 Hope through the Mist
 And through the thick misty smoke,
They saw him come: limping, bleeding,
A missing boot exposing a foot, calloused and boiled,
With rain, mud, dirt and thorns.
Body, pale and malnourished,
And almost swaying with weakness.
But the eyes, oh, his eyes, radiant, through the gloom.
Shining with courage and determination.
Determination and a hope.
A hope for the future.
The future, in his arms: A child.
Shivering, cold and scared, in the rain:
Pouring from the steely grey skies.
Drops of water sliding down his cheeks,
Mixed with the salty tears of a past horror.
"Was it his child?" they thought.
Seeing the man, with the child
Clutched fiercely to his chest,
Coming towards them, through the thick misty smoke.
And suddenly someone ran towards him:
A woman, demented with emotion.
Ran towards him and threw herself at his feet, wailing,
As he bent down to give her the child.
"God bless you, dear soldier."
She said, as the dark sky parted,
To show the first rays of sun.
- Senali Cooray
Heroes
 Devoted forces strove to gain freedom
Fortified power for the sake of the people
Alertly survived perilous days and nights
Bravely stood tall to protect imperilled citizens
Ended massacres which crippled the nation
Rescued the masses from harmful dangers
Secured victims and provided protection
Offered shelter and intensively needed care
Safeguarded folks from menacing mutiny
Heroic actions defeated devastative malignity
Children of mother Lanka embraced unity
Victoriously rejoiced liberated community
Devoted lives for the betterment of the country
Gallantly abolished the deleterious contrary
Heroically battled to find a peaceful resolution
Many thanks to heroes who pacified our nation
- Hemakumara Nanayakkara
Tree of Life
 Oh! That mango tree
I still remember the day
When I saw him in the morning
Like just any other day
Funny, I never stopped to think
Why he was there everyday
Must have slipped my mind
As I was trying just to cope up everyday
Here I am seated there the same way
Trying to figure out how I ended up this way
There is always another day I used to say
Only to realize we might not last another day.
- Harshani Nandarathna
Lady bartender
Ugly faces of a bunch of drunks I see
Look so cheap and of no use to me
Hang around for hours with whisky and wine
They don't bother of this empty heart of mine
I'm the lady bartender, work late in the night
Sometimes I get tired when they start to fight
Raise their voices and demand from me
"Today is a good day, pour me more lady"
They are so drunk to notice your beautiful voice
Singing for a living for you have no choice
I hear your voice even through the noise
Oh! Poor singer you sell your voice.
- Yasuththara Arandara
I am going home...
A destiny I've been waiting for,
A dream which I thought would never become true,
A return like no other; happiness will it give,
A heart pounding sentence shall I say;
I am going home.
 Feeling the warmth and love when cuddled,
Tasting the kiribath of peace celebration,
Hearing the voices and cries of happiness,
Along I walk the unbarriered way:
Recalling - I am going home.
It is a nightmare which opened good hope,
It is a patch of mud where a lotus has bloomed,
It is a swollen eye splashing tears of joy,
It is jet darkness behind a lighted lamp
It 'was' will I use there because
I am going home.
My decision has been the right one
My goal is safely in the net
My fate is rewarding, lucky to have survived,
My mind is free to utter, murmur and repeat all along
With humble pride, that I am going home.
- Hasini Rupasinghe
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