UNEXPECTED MOMENTS

Saturday evening provided us with one of those moments when an amazing opportunity just falls into your lap. Prince and I had been to Colombo for the day and were both pretty exhausted when we got home, so Darren decided it would be nice if we went out for tea. We all piled into the van and headed out, only to find that our driveway (which is more like an alleyway that leads to a collection of houses around us) was blocked by a bullcart. The bullcart belonged to one of our neighbours and was loaded with coconuts. The man and his wife bought coconuts and took them home to sell them on to others later.

The man and his wife had only just begun to unload the cart so it seemed that we would have a long wait until they had finished their work and could move the bull and cart. Then it came - the moment of inspiration! I asked Prince to ask them if it would be okay if the boys could come and help them. This was fine with them, so we all piled back out of the van and walked cautiously around the bull (well, except for Jaymon, who bailed right up to the beast while we all called for him to keep away!) to the cart at the back. The owner was throwing the coconuts from the cart to the ground. His wife would then gather them up and throw them over the barbed wire fence into their dirt yard. So we all joined in and soon there were coconuts flying all over the place. At one stage Jaymon, who had trouble clearing the barbed wire fence, threw a coconut straight into the wire and it bounced back and hit him on the head. He wasn't perturbed though - should I be concerned? I had to ask Darren to slow down when he started to throw the coconuts around like a madman.

We finished with the coconuts and I remembered that I had my camera in my bag. I grabbed it out so Darren could take some photos of us with the bull and cart. Then the owner offered to let the boys into the empty cart to have a little ride while he lead the bull away. In the mean time, Darren and I introduced ourselves to some other neighbours who were out enjoying the evening's entertainment. The lady we spoke to worked in a shop in one of the hotels on the beach, so her English was quite good. She was there with her niece who will turn 1 in a few weeks time. It was our best opportunity so far to get to know some of our neighbours. After that we piled back into the van and head off for dinner. The meal was delicious, making a great end to a fantastic evening.