Mother Looking For Her Son’s Name On War Heroes’ Monument Poem by Jayatissa K. Liyanage

Hey mother, what are you looking for?
Are you looking for that valiant hero?
Who, once, was in your possession?

No! No! He is no longer there, mother.
Nor is he yours any more.
He is there, but not with you.
He is a hero belonging to all on this soil
Today, tomorrow and for ever

You see only some inscriptions on this pillar.
He is neither there, nor in any one place.
This hero is every where; believe me

Go see where children play; he is there.
Look at those farmers who toil on soil; He is there.
Walk in to work sites, any where; you find him amid workers.
Peep in to the poor mothers’ dwellings
Find him helping them cook the scanty meal.

Scan through all places of sanctity;
Temples, churches, mosques and kovils
You are sure to see him among devotees

Look at Mother Nature, filled with blooming canopies,
Freely singing birds, nurturing deer calves
Trickling water spouts, greenery frilled ravines
He is seen and heard every where; lively

Our hero, is not tucked in a stone pillar
Or a monument of any kind

For, he is immortal and eternal
Found every where, every day
Especially within beating hearts of
Patriotic sons and daughters, of divine motherland,
Who are grateful to you, for your generosity!