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Mission: soulmate search — successful! By Kumudu Amarasingham

Some things are immortal. One sees lots of wise heads nod in heavy agreement. But what is im-        mortal? “Deathlessness,” they say in one awestricken breath. Richard Bach and quite a few philosophers say immortality is love – because God is love. Then we ask “What is love?”

The Bridge Across Forever by Richard Bach states love is a bridge across time and space and even causation. Love is being. “We are the bridge across forever, arching above the sea, adventuring for our pleasure, living mysteries for the fun of it, choosing disasters over triumphs challenges impossible odds, testing ourselves over and again, learning love and love and LOVE.”

It begins with the protagonist’s search for his soulmate. A search that eventually ends with his acquisition of wealth and status and fortune and fame. He decides — both conveniently and despairingly that his perfect woman is many women. One woman in many bodies. When a lot of beautiful women start falling over him (and his money and fame), and he believes there is no soulmate – then he theorises that different bits of the perfect woman exist in different women. A thought in one, a smile in another, a face in the third, a body in the fourth, a soul (rarely but sometimes) in the fifth and so on and on and on. Until four years after he has met and been best friends with the ‘beautiful in every sense’ Leslie Parrish. Then they become lovers, but by then Richard is a commitment phobic. He has built his walls and defenses against hurt and disappointment and most of the time he is blind, and he blindly hurts the one spirit that can save him. But he has flashes of insight:

My highest truth is that I’ve got a long way to go to learn about loving another person. My highest truth is that my Perfect Woman is at best good for some talk, some sex – transient affairs, staving off loneliness. She’s not the love the kid at the gate had in mind, so long ago.

He chooses, with some help from his future self. No really, his own future self. And thereafter it is a journey of hope and frustration and amazing, magical discovery. The story is true. They literally move together in space and time — and it is all very very real. Not just because the author says so, but because, to anyone even mildly connected with what is beyond the gross and material, it sounds so plausible.

So do we have a soulmate? Richard and Leslie say we do.

Look for a love affair that gets better with time, admiration brightening, trust growing through storms. With this one man I saw that intense intimacy and joy were possible for me. I used to think those were my own special needs, my personal signs of a soulmate. Now I think they may be everyone’s.

Perhaps from this worldly love we learn universal love. Indeed attachment cannot be love because it is dependant, but where there is imperfection attachment is inevitable. And, used rightly, it can no doubt be one of the greatest learning experiences. 

Under the Bridges of Paris

By Lakshman de Silva

How would you like to be

down by the Seine with me?

Oh, what I’d give for that moment or two

under the bridges of Paris with you.

Darling, I’d hold you tight

Far from the eyes of night.

Under the bridges of Paris with you

I’d make your dreams come true.

Eartha Mae Kitt, actress and singer, is famous even in Sri Lanka, mainly for this hit song Under the bridges of Paris. In the fifties and sixties when this haunting hit was played listeners were mesmerised, and even today the interest lingers.

My darling why I sing this song is easy to explain.

It tells what happens all along the bridges of the Seine.

The vagabonds go there at night to sleep all their troubles away.

But when the moon is shining bright my heart wants to sing it this way.

This song and other songs of Eartha Kitt were and are not only famous, but favourites of those not only in the United States but also in many other countries.

Eartha Kitt is both a singer and an actress. She was born on January 17, 1927 in North South Carolina in the United States. She has also acted on stage, and has been a star of night clubs.

She began living in Harlem in New York at the age of eight. When she was attending the High School of Performing Arts she became a member of the Katherine Dunham dancers, and with them she made a tour of Europe.

She stayed in Paris and appeared in a posh night club. On her return to the US she also appeared in Manhattan supper clubs.

She performed at the Blue Angel as a cabaret artiste. Next she appeared in Monotonous in Broadway which lead to a national tour and Twentieth Century Fox film by the same name.

Her stardom in Broadway led to a succession of best selling records which included Love For Sale and Folk Tales Of The Tribes Of Africa for which she received a Grammy nomination.

She again returned to the cabaret scene at The Persian Room, The Empire Room, and London’s Talk of the Town among others.

In her return to Broadway she took part in the play Mrs. Patterson and she received a Tony nomination. In addition to stage appearances there followed also films that included, The Mark of the Hawk with Sydney Poitier and Anna Lucasta with Sammy Davis Jr. During this period she also became involved in Batman television series in her famous Catwoman role.

Eartha has sung in a number of countries in 10 different languages and she was honoured on Hollywood Boulevard’s ‘Walk of Fame’ in 1960.

In 1968 at a White House luncheon hosted by Lady Bird Johnson, Eartha spoke against the Vietnam war. The result was she was blacklisted by many in the U.S. entertainment industry and she was forced to work abroad.

She returned to the United States in 1974. Her first autobiography was Thursday’s Child and later she published a second autobiography Alone with me.

Her third volume I’m still here: confessions of a sex kitten was released in 1989. A feature length documentary on her life entitled All By Myself was produced by filmmaker Christian Blackwood.

Eartha Kitt’s performance at the Café Carlyle in New York had star studded audiences and her album Back in Business was nominated for a Grammy award in 1996.

Eartha reveals her secret of vitality in her elegant book Rejuvenate! Its Never Too Late designed specifically for older readers.

‘Under the bridges of Paris with you

I’d make your dreams come true.’

Aurora — Achala’s first solo

There is no better way to  greet the new year than  with a little positivity, and nothing says positivity like a little colour. Hence the reason that Achala Jayawardena has chosen this very special time to exhibit her latest artistic exploits.

The exhibition titled Aurora meaning a conflagration of colour is the third such foray in to the world of art for Achala. Having sketched all her life she only started to paint and use colours under the nurturing eye of Latifa Ismail, having joined her art class in 2000. Achala stresses that if not for the introductions made by another artist, Hethumathie Karunathilake, her dreams may not have been fulfilled.

Achala’s first group exhibition was held in September 2000, just six months after having joined Latifa’s class. In February 2002 she held her second group exhibition under the watchful eye of Latifa and soon the progression of the young artist was taking place.

This is Achala’s first solo exhibition and is a testament to her talent, confidence and natural growth as an artist. Achala’s paintings include many varied subject matter which veer from dark and brooding to vibrant and colourful and while most of the paintings are done with oil colours there are soft pastels,water colours, charcoal and even ink drawings. She has included among her paintings portraits, scenery, life studies and nature.

Painting for Achala is a passion only to be consumed when time permits as she is also studying for a law degree (externally) while being married. Her thanks go to Ismail for “Letting me paint the way I want”. Achala says “Mrs Ismail has always been helpful and if we make any mistakes she simply touches up the painting and shows us the way it’s done. I really enjoy painting as a group even more than painting on my own.” “My parents have always encouraged me to paint and I am thankful to them, my husband and my brother and sister-in-law, who though not in the country have always supported me ‘.

Achala Jayawardena’s solo exhibition of paintings Aurora will be held at the Lionel Wendt Gallery from 2-4 ofJanuary. The exhibition will be open to the public on the 3rd and 4th.

—Michelle Perera

A Musical photographer

Vipula Amarasinghe is a professional pho tographer. But apart from his sometimes  hard and tiring job, Amarasinghe also plays in a band. For Amarasinghe his interest in music and photography started many years ago. Even though some of us pursue one profession and leave the other behind, Amarasinghe wasn’t about to give up either of these subjects. Even though music and photography are miles apart Amarasinghe through interest and commitment was able to master the art of both subjects very fast.

“I started taking wedding photographs at the age of 18” says Amarasinghe, who at present performs with the Sonic musical band. 

According to Amarasinghe being a photographer can be tough at times. “There is a lot of planning and setting involved when taking a photograph. In the case of performing in a band, well that is a completely different area. Both areas require hard work. But since I love what I do I have managed to divide my time between photography and music” says Amarasinghe. 

Amarasinghe covers a wide area in photography. Starting from wildlife to diving and fashion photography, Amarasinghe has also covered many areas of interest in the media.

Speaking of his experience with the Sonic band, Amarasinghe said for the past three and a half years he has been singing. “There are days when bookings pile-up. At such times we have two groups namely Group A and Group B to perform” explained Amarasinghe.

Amarasinghe has performed with singer Rupa Indumathi on radio. Having songs such as Sina Malak Pipila and Sanda Sisila Aran to his name, Amarasinghe has come a long way since he first pursued his interest in music. 

“I’m hoping to release more songs in the future” says this singer and photographer who doesn’t hesitate to mention that he received much support and encouragement from other musicians in the field.