AsI get older, I have become the person I was always meant to be. When I look into the mirror in the morning, I secretly wish I was young again. My long curly hair has disappeared. My youthful looks have faded into nothingness. Our relevance to society reduces as we age.
Yet within my brotherhood, I find friendships in the most unlikely places. We are no longer rivals — we nourish each other. We lean on each other. We share our anxieties and experiences openly. Perspective puts a different lens to help to be open.
I learned to breathe through the pain of my separations. It eased the anxiety and the uncertainty. Taking one day at a time helped me to step into the next moment. Life took care of itself, moment by moment. I moved on.
These dynamic changes propelled me to take a quantum leap, leaving a lifelong industry and moving to a new undiscovered industry. I got into a job that I had not done before. I reinvented myself, learning the ropes of content design and bringing my curiosity to another level. I moved away from my comfort zone. I met a whole set of creative designers.
Now, I live the best life, running a creative practice,s and managing an awesome team.
When Covid hit more than two years ago, I changed again. My team and I started working from home. With the change of lifestyle, I evolved. I did my team meetings and 1:1s walking in my beautifully landscaped neighbourhood. Thanks to my Apple watch, I walked 12 kilometres e. I saw an exercise physiologist and worked out every alternate day. As a result, I lost 3 kgs, which is 5% of my body weight. I changed my diet and learned to cook new varieties of food. I adopted wearing casual clothes, moving away from office attire. I upgraded my tech gear, from my Apple devices to the sound system. I subscribed to Apple Music, allowing me to listen to thousands of songs.
I befriended my neighbours and played table tennis with them on weekends, often beating a bunch of young thirty-something men. I learnt about human trafficking in Africa by watching a myriad of challenging movies on streaming services. I learned to draw on my iPad and rediscovered my love for artwork.
I started writing on medium and am pursuing it rigorously as a daily habit. It is therapeutic and self-soothing. I love it.
These gifts of self-contentment were the best gifts of Covid-induced change of lifestyle. So my stars aligned for me.
I imagine when I can travel again to various corners of the world and meet my brother and old friends, I grew up with. I imagine volunteering in Sri Lanka, in the education field or social sciences, encouraging creativity and reinvention.
I imagine myself waiting impatiently until my grandkids become teenagers to walk with them and share the joys of creativity and my own stories of reinvention.
Cyril Stanley A story of gratitude — Denzil recalls a friend who looked out for him in his budding years in Sri Lanka Denzil Jayasinghe 11 min read · Aug 27, 2022 1 Give us a bit of background on how you met Cyril. It was the seventies in the sleepy village of Dalugama , my ancestral hometown, some ten kilometres from Colombo. With their flared bell bottoms and Afro-style hair, it was easy to notice Cyril and his younger brother Edward. I’d bump into the duo in the neighbourhood as I walked home after a day at college. A casual hello greeting turned into a conversation and an evolving friendship with the duo at an age when making friends was effortless. However, it was Cyril who reached out to me first. What did the brothers look like? C yril was a younger version of Smokey Robinson and his brother, Edward, a junior Lionel Richie but darker. Both had curly hair, grown long, copying the Afro-American idols of the seventies. Smokey Robinson, Cyril Stan...
A Child of Curiosity How inherent inquisitiveness became a key driver in learning experiences. Denzil Jayasinghe · B orn in the mid-20th century, I am a product of the post-World War II era. My parents, who were teenagers when the war commenced, married in the 1950s. As a representative of the baby boomer generation, I was born under the astrological sign of Capricorn, the tenth sign of the zodiac. My birth took place at Zoysa Nursing Home, a renowned institution in Colombo, Sri Lanka, around 5 in the morning. Sri Lanka, known for its tropical climate, is a beautiful island nation south of India. This climate appealed to me, and I sought similar weather in my twenties, spending them in Dubai, where the winter resembles an Australian summer. Raised by religious parents, I held them in deep affection. However, the church teachings posed a paradox for a young mind, instructing one to love God more than one’s parents. I initially adhered to the Ten Commandments and other societal norms in ...
20 quick-fire questions * If you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would it be? Your life would not turn the way that you planned. It is OK to be naïve and stupidly young. What do you like doing in your spare time? Writing and reading. Both complement each other. What would you change your name to? My family's name is Jayasinghe. ජයසිංහ in Sinhala in the original script. Phonetically, it is pronounced Jaya-Sinha in Sri Lanka. But in English, through generations, it was spelt Jayasinghe, which sounds differently in English. I would change its spelling to Jaya-Sinha to align it with its original sound. Perhaps my grandkids in Australia could do it. What’s your favourite time of day? The morning hours. I am most productive in the mornings. What is your biggest weakness? I could get carried away with what I could be doing. Sometimes, I must pinch myself to stop what I am doing. What is your favourite colour? Green. Always from my kid days. Would you believe I had...
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