Puppy

Ten years ago our neighbours were transferred to another tea estate. They left on Christmas Day and gave us a puppy. My sister wrapped it in a cloth and gave it a full jug of milk to drink. I did not like it because it was ugly.
I came to Colombo soon after and didn't return for two or three months. When I arrived back a big fat dog came out of the house and started barking at me. Amazingly the small puppy had become a big dog although he was still called "Puppy."
Other dogs looked very small in comparison to him. He was a very peculiar dog.
One day when I set off to catch the bus for Colombo with my bags. As I was walking I heard something coming after me. I looked back, it was Puppy. He jumped all over me with his muddy paws, howled and licked me all over. I tried to chase him away but he wouldn't go. When the bus came he leapt aboard and wanted to come with me. I was so embarrassed! Everyone was looking at me. I had to get off the bus and was only saved by my sister who arrived with a chain and with the greatest difficulty carried him off home.
My family said that Puppy used to eat small goats and would return home with a full tummy and sleep it off for hours on end. He we went anywhere by car he would chase after us and returning home would refuse to eat for days.
This is not the only story about Puppy--there are many others. But the saddest part is that Puppy is not with us today he died three years ago of distemper.
VAGIRA

The Lunatic and the Doctor

One day a doctor is walking around the wards in a psychiatric hospital. He saw a lunatic running at him with a mango in one hand and a knife in the other. The doctor thought the lunatic was going to kill him so he ran.
After a few minutes the doctor came to the end of a corridor with no doors or windows...he was trapped. He prayed and closed his eyes.
After a moment the lunatic rushed up to the doctor and said:
"Oh, doctor! I'm exhausted. I never thought it would be so difficult to offer you a piece of mango!"
ISHARA

The Tramp

A tramp was sleeping on a park bench late at night. A man and woman were walking past. One of them tapped him on the shoulder and asked,
"Excuse me! what is the time?"
The tramp was very annoyed at being woken up.
"I don't know!" he said angrily. "I haven't got a watch" and he went back to sleep.

Sometime later another man was passing. He woke the tramp up and said
"I'm sorry to bother you' but I wonder if you could tell me what the time is it".
Again the tramp said he didn't know.

By this time he was very fed up, and he asked himself:
"How come these insane people don't let me sleep?".
He started thinking for a while and..
"Ah...I've a nice idea!"
Then he got a pen and a piece of peaper and wrote:
I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE TIME IS on it.
"There you go!" he said and he kept the paper on the bench and went back to sleep.

After an hour later, a policeman was passing. He read the sign, woke the tramp up and said:
"It's 2.30 sir"
BANURA

Our Little Secret!

This happened when I was in grade II. There was a small nelli tree behind the classroom. When the nelli fruit comes we usually pluck and eat it. As there weasn't any fruit close to the ground we had to get them from the upper branches using a long stick.
One day when we couldn't find a long stick we thought we would shake the tree to get the fruit down. We grabbed a large branch but it snapped off and we hurt ourselves.
As we did all of this without permission we had to hide the evidence. We threw leaves into the dustbin and we hid the branch inside a cupboard. Until now no one knows what damage we did. Up until now we were safe it was our secret.
ISHARA

Saris, Hymnbooks & Farewells

I left school this year. I studied at Bishop's College and I have many memories.
The happiest day in my school career was the day I got my Ordinary Level examination results. I had passed so well and my parents and teachers were so happy. Another fantastic day was when we had our school sari party. It was the first time I had worn a sari. All the students were in grade 13 and 14 and we enjoyed it so much. I danced with all my friends and it was a wonderful day.
There were two sad moments in my school life. One was the day me and my friends got punished by the Principal. The Science Society had organized a seminar on Physics. The exam was so near so me and my friends thought not to participate but to stay at home to study. So we didn't go to school on that day. The President of the Science Society was so angry with us she complained to the Principal. The Principal punished us by making us stay after school to paste torn hymn books. I was so sad because this was the first time I had been punished at school.
The other sad day was the day I left school. It was the saddest day in my life because I had to finish my schooling and wouldn't be able to see my friends again. We thanked all the teachers for their help and said goodbye, but left with sweet memories.
UDESHIKA

Happy Schooldays

On schooldays my parents made me get up at 4.30am. I was not allowed to play or watch TV until I had finished my homework.
At school I was very happy. My favourite teacher was Chamila de Silva. My favourite subject was Japanese. But I hated Social Studies. On schooldays we had lunch together at school and we had half an hour free time before the next lesson.
I had a lot of friends. Even now we are still good friends such as Malithi, Kumudika, Amoda and Mayuri.
We enjoyed sports meetings and musical concerts. At the end of term we had plays, class parties and games.
They were very happy schooldays!
AMANDA

Balls in School

One day we were in our classroom studying and talking. We were preparing for our Advanced Level exam. Suddenly one of my friends threw a ball and hit another student. He threw it back and soon the whole class was throwing the ball and running around.
Our classroom was on the upper floor and used to be a hall so there was plenty of space to move about.
Then I got the ball and threw it at a friend. Unfortunately it missed him and went straight through an open window into the chemistry lab next door. It hit a tray of lab equipment and some glass test tubes and beakers were broken.
Suddenly the class went silent and all the students went back to their work as if nothing had happened.
Then a teacher came into the class and asked who threw the ball. My friends told me to keep silent. The teacher informed the sectional head who came to the classroom. He was a good teacher so we decided to tell him what happened.
He didn't punish us but told us to replace the broken lab equipment. I tried to buy the things but I couldn't find them, so I gave money to the lab assistant.
The problem was solved easily and fairly.
DHANUSHKA

Honour

A feeling of pride and pleasure from being shown respect. I like this word because its meaning is very smart and respectful.

Our Favourite Words

VIRTUE- Someday we may lose our hair, our teeth, our looks or even all our property. But there's something we won't lose, 'Virtue', because it never grows old. It'll always be your best friend till eternity.
So what could be better? I love it.
INVISIBLE- The meaning is some strange thing that the human eye cannot see.
It sounds fantastic and hints suspicion also, I like that.
WISDOM- We don't receive wisdom. We must discover it for ourselves. We have to be very keen to get it, very eager for it and dedicated to it. There's no way we can stand and stare or think about being tired, weak or about things coming easily. It's tiring, it's hard but when we look back at the end, it's about strength and power; no one can steal it.
Don't just stand there. Get busy!
ENTHUSIASM- A feeling of being inspired or the inspiration a person has.
I the sound of this word most of all: it makes me feel fresh and cool.
VISION- If there's no vision, life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly. No matter what our age or condition is there're still untapped possibilities within us and there's a vision. Cherish it; that's the mother and the print of your ultimate achievements.
SOLDIER- It means a brave person who is dedicated to save his own motherland in the military. The main reason for me to like this word is, basicaly the meaning. In our country soldiers are highly valued people and when I hear this word I feel honour and pride in my country.
PARTICULAR- This word means giving special attention to a thing. I like the pronunciation of this word and its sound.
NATURE- It signifies our beautiful surroundings and all the natural things in the world. Nature is the closest thing to us. We cannot survive without it and we must treasure it.
ENCOURAGE- give confidence, strength or hope as in saying "you can do it", "you can win", "you're the best", "go ahead" or "never give up". If you want to give the finest gift to anyone this is it. Every single living being needs this to grow - even plants and wild animals. If everyone received this genius would blossom and the world would produce in abundance beyond dreams. Give it with all your heart and mean it!
MISTAKE-not right or correct; an error, the wrong thing. The value of an action is measured by 'mistakes'. Where there is a great action there'll be a great 'mistake', but 'mistakes' show us what we need to learn. If there are no 'mistakes' there is no chance to learn.
SAMANGI & SHANIKA

Bright--Brain

I love this word because the image of a shining apple comes to my mind every time I hear it.
DHANUSHKA
This is the apparatus with which we think we think.
PARANE

Freedom

When I hear this word a feeling comes to my mind, "I can do anything."

Bus to Kandy

There were amazing days when I was at school.
One day we went on a trip to Kandy. We sang songs during our journey. On the way the bus broke down. We got down from the bus and sang and danced.
It was very funny for all girls.
We enjoyed it so..... much.
Nadeesha

Experience

Experience is the worst teacher. It gives the test before presenting the lesson.

Blue--Nature--Doctor--Love--Mother

NATURE-Nature is the environment around us. Nature has given us so many gifts such as animals,trees and birds.We can relax ourselves by looking at the nature.If we live according to the nature we can live happily.
BLUE-My favourite colour is blue.If something is this colour it is very beautiful & attractive. Blue is one of the most seen colours in the world because sky is blue and the sea is blue.
DOCTOR-A doctor is a person who gives medical treatment to sick people & a person who devotes his life for people. My ambition is to be a Doctor. I would also like to devote my life to poor people & help them as much as I can.
LOVE-Without love we can't live. We want this and it is very familiar to all of our hearts. One of the most beautiful words that we can find.
MOTHER-A person that gives birth to a child.I love my mother a lot. She stays like a shadow behind me & helps me a lot. She is always with me in happy moments and sad moments. She always has advice for me to be a good citizen.
DREAM-We can see what we would like to see & the things we are thinking of & the things we love.
UDESHIKA.
AMANDA.

Shopping

Shopping is better than sex,because if you're not satisfied after the shopping you can make an exchange for it.

The Water Bottle Incident

We went to a single sex school. Every day was full of unforgetable memories. We enjoyed ourselves as much as we could.
Our class overlooked the road. A lot of cars and vans parked there. The drivers often stood near the vehicles. One day we emptied our water bottles out of the window.
The water poured onto the heads of the people below and they got very wet. They scolded us and reported us to the Principal. So the principal got angry and came to our class room to tell us off. She punished us by making us stand on our chairs for an half an hour. We couldn't stop laughing as we did it!

The School Cleaner

It happened in my Adannced Level class, in grade 12. Cleaning the class room before starting school at 7.30 a. m. was one of the main duties of students to be fulfilled as groups. This was our day of cleaning.
This day, we were not able to clean our class room on time, because all members of our group were late. While we were starting to do cleaning, our class teacher came to start the Logic lesson in first period. After seeing the untidiness of the class, he was got very upset and angry. He looked at us and shouted. For the purpose of giving punishment to us, he took the broom and cleaned the room by himself. We were not allowed to do any cleaning.
He wanted us to see "how cleaning is done."
KAMANI

Transformer

Last month I saw the Transformer film with my friends at home, it was really exciting and the plot was fantastic. The lead actor was handsome and the lead actress was also pretty, nice and intelligent as well. That would be my favourite film because I like films a lot such as science fiction films, action films, cartoons, love stories, and comedies. But now I don't have time to watch films much, just sometimes because I want to improve my English as much as I can.
On the other hand, I think it'd be better to spend time on reading to make good progress in English. In the last few days I have read a bookwhich said " BE A DOER NOT A DREAMER" , what you dream about is what you will do in the future. Love what you do, if you don't love what you do you cannot make it through. Passion is more important than brains and talent. You have to make up a big dream if you never have a big dream, it means you are not going to make anything succeed in your life. If you love what you do you are going to work hard. That's what I really wanted to say " The harder you you work the luckier you get".
MAHATIP

An Unforgettable Situation

It was last month. As usual I went to chemistry class. On that day I met a strange girl named Sajeena. When I looked at her, she saw me and began to look at me. Then I smiled with her,but she didn't smile back. Then in the interval I went to her and invited her to come with me for a coffee. But unfortunatelly she refused my invitation.
We began to meet on Mondays regularly. I thought that as a result of our meeetings we had buildt up a friendship. Then I asked her to come for a coffee with me again. This time she accepted my invitation and came with me.
I think I'm falling love with her,I thought she also the same. Then suddenly I said "SAJEENA I LOVE YOU".
I think she was shocked and start to think. Then she said "No I dont like you"!!!
But I calmly said that "I LOVE YOU" again. Then she began to cry and scold me. Furiously she gave me a huge slap.
I didn't meet her for three weeks. Then one day I saw her at the bus stop. I went to her and asked "What do you think of me?".
Suddenly she said "I like you". I felt like I was flying!!! It was so amazing. After that I gave her my phone number and took her phone number too. Now we are calling each other every day.
Now we are happy!!!!Praise the lord!!!!!!!

KASUN,SHALINTHA and MILINDA.

Love

"A great interest and pleasure in something, for pleasure not profit." I like this word because its meaning is very deep but the word itself is short and sweet.
NANTHAN

My Schooldays

During my school days I had many friends, we used to tell funny stories and laugh all the time even during our lessons. There were times that we were punished by our teachers.
We used to share the food that we brought from home. I had a happy and fantastic school time but unfortunately all the friends are scattered now.
Vagira

Physics Teacher

Hey guys I'm going to talk some stuff about the teacher I hated the most. He was my school physics teacher. He was a real git. I think he's the reason I used to hate physics in the first place. He was 5'6 feet in height, had scruffy hair and a chubby look. He always used to have a grumpy look on his face. He used to come to school on time and he always came to the class with his boring book stuff.
As a habit he used a big book with exercises which were far too difficult for us. When I told him this he ignored me, I just felt like I wanted to pull my hair out!!!!!
He came with that book every day and scribbled pointlessly on the black board.

Where is God and what does He look like?

Two mischievous little boys were impossible to control so their mother called in the new preacher who was famous for disciplining children.
The preacher, a huge man with a booming voice, called the first boy to see him and asked him sternly,
"Do you know where God is, son?"
The boy's mouth dropped open, but he made no response. So the preacher repeated the question in an even sterner voice,
"Where is God?"
The boy screamed and bolted from the room. He went straight to his brother's room standing there shaking with fear.
"What's happened?" his brother asked.
"We're in big trouble this time. God is missing and they think we did it!"
A preacher arrived in town He wanted to post a letter so he asked a young boy where the Post Office was. After the boy had told him he said,
"If you come to church this evening you can hear me telling everyone how to get to heaven."
"I don't think I'll be there" the boy said. "You don't even know the way to the Post Office!"
A kindergarten teacher was watching her children drawing.
As she watched one of the girls she asked her what the drawing was.
"I'm drawing God" the girl replied.
"But no one knows what God looks like" the teacher said.
"They will, as soon as I've finished my drawing."
SAMANGI

Job Interview

The day I got my first job was an unforgettable day. I got up early in the morning. I was frightened because I didn't know what questions they would ask and it was my first ever interview.

I practised some interview questions with my mother. Then I put on a suit, prayed to God and arranged my certificates in my file. Then I ate breakfast but the breakfast wouldn't go into my mouth! Even so I managed to eat a small piece of bread.
Then I went with my father by van. We reached Kollupitya by 9.30am. I went into the office. The Receptionist took my interview letters and asked me to sit down.

Time passed slowly but eventually they called for me. I went into the interview room.
"Good Morning. Please take a seat" they said. There were three interviewers, one woman and two men.
Then they asked me some questions. The fear went from my mind. I answered the questions successfully. After that I handed over my certificates.
"Congratulations! You've got the job. You can start on Monday" they told me.

I was very happy. The others looked for me and asked what type of questions I was asked. I told them everything.

I went home with my father and told my family. They were very happy too.
THEVAKY

Twelve of the Best

There are various shops in Colombo that really fascinate me such as Beverly Street, Nolimit, Odel, Mondy, House of Fashion, Fashion Bug, Liberty Plaza, Majestic City, Cotton Collection, Leather Collection, Lakmal Arcade and many more. Like a web they're connected to each other and they all have branches throughout the country; even in some rural areas.
If I think about only one shop as my favourite another shop floats into my mind, and I recall what I bought there before. For example, when I think Beverly Street is the best, suddenly I think about a top or a T-shirt I bought from Cotton Collection or if I choose Odel I'll remember the shoes from Lakmal Arcade or Leather Collection. If I'm looking at a jacket from House of Fashion, Mondy's flashes through my mind. Thus I can't point out the best shop or even a favourite product because I'm crazy about teddies and toys as well as clothes.
"Reading makes a complete man". I like bookshops especially Sarasavi at Nugegoda and Vijitha Yapa at Bambalapitiya. I love reading Sherlock Holmes detective stories, science fiction and horror. I also love the video shops in Liberty Plaza.
In short, all these shops give me enormous pleasure and give me quality, reasonable prices and top brands. So, I simply can't make up my mind which is the best!
SAMANGI

My First Visit to the UK: Leicester

One of my members of staff and I went to the UK 7 years back. This was our first visit to the UK. We landed at Heathrow Airport at 9.30 on a Sunday morning. We checked out and outside the airport was a man with our name boards. We got in the car and drove off towards Leicester.
It was a long drive (3 hours) but the amazing thing is that the driver didn't talk to us at all and we were scared to talk to him. The countryside was interesting to look at.
When he dropped us at our hotel we had our lunch and went for a walk. The next day we had meetings, and all week we were based in the office or meeting technologists. On Friday we went to the airport to return to Sri Lanka. We arrived at Terminal 4 and found that our flight had been changed to Qatar Airlines. We took a train and went to another Terminal where they told us that Sri Lankan Airlines had to sign off our tickets. We went back to Terminal 4 and they told us to go to the London office. We didn't have time to do that so we had an argument...but still nothing happened.
The next flight wasn't until Sunday morning. So what could we do now???
We had left our jackets at the hotel and we were shivering.
The next day we went to London and visited lots of places: Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square... it was great fun.
We ended the day by going up in the London Eye. It was a fantastic trip.
Thank you Sri Lankan Airlines for my extra day!!!
DINESH

The Ant Bully a.k.a. the Destroyer

One early morning after his mum and dad had already gone to work Lucas opened the door and went into the garden. A few boys passed him and teased him,
"Hey Peanut! What are you doing?" and threw an empty plastic bottle at him.
It made Lucas angry but he couldn't do anything, so he just looked at them, laughed and walked away.
He started watering the grass with his water pistol and noticed a few ants running around his hand. He brushed them off and then spotted a colony of ants. He sprayed the colony with water and the ants, under attack, fled the colony; some were injured.
The ants kept running but one of them, Liz, wanted to see the Destroyer and try to talk to him.
"Hello! What's you name?" Liz the ant said.
Lucas couldn't hear anything, but saw an ant on his leg and tried to squash it.
Another ant, Jack, ran to rescue his friend and to save her by holding her leg and running away.
She said, "Thanks, Jack!"
Jack the ant asked her "What were you doing there? You know it's very dangerous. I can't save your life all the time. You must be careful."
"I'm just trying to talk to that boy, perhaps we can make peace." Liz replied.
"Liz you're always so optimistic and considerate to others. That's why I love you!" said Jack.

"Lucas can you give me a hand?" came a voice from the house.
"Yes, Grandma!" said Lucas.
Then Lucas put his water pistol down and vanished into the house.
MAHATIP

The Bald Knight

Once upon a time, a long time ago there was a knight, who as he grew older lost all his hair. He became as bald as an egg. He decided to wear a wig.
One day the Lords and Ladies of the castle asked him to go hunting with them. He put on his beautiful wig and set off happily for the forest.
However, while he was hunting something terrible happened. His wig got caught in the branch of a tree and came off in full view of everyone. How they laughed at him!
At first the knight felt foolish. He was blushing there in front of everyone. But later he saw the funny side and started laughing too.
The knight never ever wore his wig again.
The moral of this story is when people laugh at us it is best to ....!
BANURA

Nasruddin and the Candle

One day the friends of Mullah Nasruddin got together to celebrate his birthday. As they were talking Nasruddin tboasted to his friends that he could do anything. One of his friends challenged him to stay the night at Snow Mountain. Snow Mountain was the coldest place in their country. The next day Nasruddin set off for Snow Mountain to spend the night. He took some candles and a book.
The next morning he returned and went to his friends to tell them that he had spent the night at Snow Mountain. They didn't believe it because he had taken candles.
He invited his friends over for dinner. All the friends came but the dinner wasn't ready. They waited until midnight and then went into the kitchen where they saw Nasruddin trying to cook soup in a large saucepan with a candle.
MILINDA

Cunning Fox

One day a donkey was walking down the road when he heard a voice:
"Help! Help!"
The donkey looked to see where the sound had come from. Then he saw a fox who had fallen into a well.
"Please help me get out!" pleaded the fox.
"But how can I help you?"asked the donkey.
"Friend you can jump into the well and then I can climb up your body and get out" replied the fox.
The donkey did as he was asked and the fox managed to climb out. The fox was about to leave when the donkey asked,
"Aren't you going to help me get out?"
"You should have thought about that before you jumped in." replied the fox.
DHANUSHKA

The Goat and the Pot

Mahadana Muttha thought he was the cleverest person in his village, but he wasn't - he was a fool. He had a huge book called "The Big Knowledge Book" and he used it to solve villagers' problems.
One day the Head of the village came to Mahadana Muttha because his goat had got his head stuck in a pot. He hoped that Mahadana Muttha would have a solution. Mahadana Muttha opened his great big book and sure enough he found a solution:
"Cut the goat's neck and protect the pot."
The Head of the village was also a fool and he said O.K.
Mahadana Muttha called his friend who brought a knife and cut the goat's head off.
No goat and a head still stuck inside the pot!
"O My God!" screamed the Head of the village when he realised what a big foolish thing they had done.
Mahadana Muttha ran off before the Head of the village could get him.
KASUN

The Bear and the Two Friends

Alfie and Ben were two good friends. One day they were passing through a forest. Suddenly they saw a bear coming towards them. Alfie ran off and climbed up a tree. Ben didn't know how to climb trees so he was stuck.
He remembered that wild animals do not disturb dead bodies so he lay still on the ground, closed his eyes and held his breath.
The bear came over to Ben and and smelt his face. He decided he was dead and walked away.
When the bear was out of sight Alfie climbed down from the tree and went over to Ben.
"What did the bear say to you?" he asked.
Ben retorted, "The bear told me to keep away from selfish friends like you."
NANTHAN

Punishment for the Worms

A mother didn't like the fact that her son always wanted to sleep in late.
She said many things to try and wake him.
"Shall we go out into the garden and see how wonderful nature is? It is so beautiful today. The sun is shining, the flowers are in full bloom and multicoloured butterflies are flying here, there and everywhere."
But her son didn't take any notice. Again she tried to wake him.
"There are so many birds this morning singing beautiful songs at the tops of their voices...But oh what a sad sight the birds are catching and gobbling poor little worms."The son suddenly sat up and exclaimed,
"Serves them right for getting up this early in the morning!"
AMANDA

The Fox King

Once upon a time there was a fox in a faraway jungle. It was a drought period and all the animals lacked food and water. One day the fox went to a nearby village to find food and water, as he could bear his hunger no longer.
The fox saw a pot and peaked inside to find food. But there wasn't any food inside - it was a pot of blue paint. The pot fell over and the fox was covered head to tail in blue paint. The fox was scared and ran off to the jungle.
When he got to the jungle the other animals didn't recognize him and they thought he was a special messenger from god, sent to save them from the drought. So they elected him their king. The king was given every comfort and lived a life of leisure and luxury.
But on Poya (full moon) Day all the foxes in the jungle began to bark at the moon. The king couldn't stop himself and began to bark too. At once all the animals saw that their king was really a fox and chased him out of the jungle.

The inborn qualities of a person cannot be hidden.
SHANIKA

The Yam Tree

After long journeys around the world two friends met up to share their amazing experiences.
The first said that he had been in a country where there was a yam tree so huge it could shade 500 riders and horses under just one leaf of that tree.
Having listened to that story the second person recounted a story of a huge pot factory where 2,500 people were needed to make just one pot; 1000 working on the top, 1000 working around the pot and another 500 working inside.
Hearing this the first friend said he didn't believe it and started to laugh and tease his friend.
"What's the purpose of such a large pot" he asked.
"To boil the yam from your yam tree" his friend replied.
VAJIRA

Fooled by a Reflection

A dog was walking by a river with a bone in his mouth. Then he saw another dog in the water with a bigger bone than his.
He dropped his bone and jumped into the river to snatch the other dog's bone.
In the end he got neither, his own one or the other dog's one. The other dog was a reflection and his own one had dropped to the bottom of the river.
This is a good lesson for those who aren't satisfied with what they've got.
KAMANI

The Judgement of King Kakille

Once there was a king called Kakille. When he was ruling the country there were heavy rains. A poor old man's house collapsed. He was so angry he went to see the king to complain about the mason. The king summoned the mason to the palace and ordered him to be executed.
The mason was so scared and begged the king not to kill him. He said that it wasn't his fault. The pot he used was so big that he had mixed the clay with too much water. The potter should be punished for this. The king thought for a moment and summoned the potter to the palace.
The potter begged the king not to execute him. He told the king that while he was making the pot a woman kept walking up and down the road and smiling at him. He was distracted and couldn't make the pot properly. So the potter told the king that the woman should be punished.
The woman was summoned. She was horrified and expalained why she had walked past the potter's workshop several times. She had given some gold to a jeweller to make a necklace. But the jeweller hadn't finished the necklace in time. So she had to go there several times until he had completed his work. The jeweller should be punished.
The king thought about it and ordered the jeweller to come to the palace.
The king ordered the jeweller executed by being trampled to death by an elephant.
The jeweller was a thin, bony man. He thought for a moment and told the king that the elephant would be hurt if he trampled his body. But he said that he knew a fat shopkeeper who could be easily trampled. The king thought it was a good idea and ordered the shopkeeper to be brought to the palace and executed.
So a man was punished who didn't know anything about the crime.
UDESHIKA

Classical Music

I like to listen to music. There are many varieties of music such as classical, rock, hip hop, rap, pop, country, folk etc. But I like classical music. Classical music produces some very meaningful songs.
I also like the different types of musical instrument used in classical music: sitar, violin, tabla, and box guitar. Of these, the sitar and the violin are the ones I'd most like to learn how to play.
There are many popular classical musicians in our country. They include Sunil Edirisinghe, WD Amaradeva, Gunadasa Kapuge and Nanda Malini. My favourite classical musician is WD Amaradeva. He sings beautifully and his music is smooth on the ear.
AMANDA

Cartoons, films and languages

My name is Dantacitto but most of my friends call me Mahatip. That is my nickname. I am a Buddhist monk and I come from Burma.
My hobby is watching films. I like science fiction and thrillers as well as cartoons like Tom & Jerry, the Ant Bully and Dragon Ball. Sometimes my friends laugh at me and tease me when I'm watching cartoons. They say, "You're a grown up and you're watching cartoons like a child." But I don't care what they say. I know that everyone likes differnt things.
Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis, Brad Pitt, Keanu Reeves, Tom Cruise and Vin Disel are my favourite actors. I really like watching their films.
By the way, I also want to travel around the world and would love to learn languages like Korean, Japanese and Chinese but Ive never had the chance to learn them apart from English.
I know I'm not very good at English but I like speaking it and want to improve as much as I can even though it isn't easy for me.
MAHATIP

Nachchayana

Nachchayana was a dancing festival organised by our school Dancing Society. I had the chance to participate in this great occasion.
There were many varieties of dance forms such as Kandyan dancing, Low Country dancing, folk dancing and Manipuri dancing.
I participated in a Tamil folk dance and a Sinhala folk dance. For the Tamil folk dance I wore a sari and for the Sinhala one I wore a traditional Sihhala costume.
This was a good opportunity to discover our hidden talents and helped us build our characters.
UDESHIKA

Drunks and Surgeons

A drunken man gets on to a bus late at night and sits next to an elderly woman. She looks the man up and down and exclaims, "You are going straight to Hell!"
The man jumps out of his seat and shouts, "Good heavens! I'm on the wrong bus. I want to go to Colombo 3."
Three surgeons were discussing patients.
The first said, "I like operating on electricians because everything is colour coded."
The second said, "I think accountants are the easiest to operate on because everything inside is numbered."
The third said, "I think Sri Lankan Ministers are easiest because they are heartless, brainless, spineless, gutless and their heads and backsides are interchangeable."
PARANE