Bhanuka and Lashini’s Wedding - My speech

I don’t know how some people find their soulmates within a few months of joining the university. It took me a year to find the examination division.

That was pretty clichéd. But some clichés do come true! For the past 6 years, Bhanuka and Lashini were the legendary couple in the university, our gold standard of what a relationship should be.

I am Aba, a close friend of Bhanuka & Lashini since Moratuwa days. I have been invited here to share some fun memories. I warmly welcome all of you to this auspicious event, and I thank you for your presence and for your wishes.

HIMYM

I’ve always joked that when Bhanuka tells his “How I met your mother” story to his kids, that story would start with me.

It was the first semester at the university, and a club called the Nature Team was planning a big 3-day trip into Knuckles. It was the first such trip of my life, and I had applied early. The evening before the trip, the organizers found that some guy had cancelled, and asked me to find a replacement. I asked around and got a reply from a guy: “Ado, Bhanuka enawa lu. List eke nama dapn”

I expected a really dark guy, a Bhanuka from our A1 group. The next day, I couldn’t find him on the trip. Instead, this guy showed up out of nowhere, profoundly thanking me. Throughout the trip, I found him to be quite a charming character, dancing, miming, and posing for silly pictures with us. Lashini was there too, a similarly outgoing girl who enjoyed the trip and had a great interest in nature. At the end of the trip, Bhanuka promised to teach me swimming, and we parted ways.

A month or two later, I was walking across the food court at the university and saw Bhanuka and Lashini sipping juice together. I was pleasantly surprised. I raised an eyebrow and teased them, and both got shy. They literally found each other before I found the exam department.

Imagine, if that guy hadn’t cancelled at the last moment, and if Bhanuka hadn’t responded quickly, we might not be here!

AIESEC Projects

Well, Bhanuka never taught me swimming, but I stumbled upon him again by pure chance, and this time we became really close friends. We did two community projects together. In the first, Bhanuka gained the reputation of being “the man who can get anything done”. The following season, he was made the leader of the flagship community project. He personally picked me for the team. We became partners in running the project.

I was always in awe of Bhanuka’s leadership and social skills. Many nights, we ended up talking for hours on the phone to find solutions. Once, when I saw him with Lashini, she laughingly remarked, “He isn’t even talking to me much these days. Always project project, Aba Aba.”

That made me realize what makes their relationship work. The understanding they had, Lashini’s flexibility to help him focus on what he deems important, and her sense of humour to address it, were all phenomenal.

Good Morning Sudu

During that project, one day I woke up at 8 am, to the sound of a text message. It was from Bhanuka and it read “Good Morning Sudu…” I was quite confused. From what angle do I look “sudu”? Bhanuka was going to send that to Lashini, but sent it to me by accident. That became a running joke, Lashini keeps reminding it and laughing.

My hard days

After the end of that project, I got into deep trouble. I was depressed. When I felt alone, he was the first to be by my side. I shall never forget that.

He sat with me, and told me, “Aba, that’s not how the world works. People judge you based on your track record, all the help you have done for them, your character, and everything. And trust me, you are a good man, and all your true friends know that.”

That was the therapy I needed. Within weeks I saw it come true. At that moment, I saw Bhanuka’s true character. His wisdom and maturity which I can only admire. Alright, back to fun stuff.

Traffic Test

One day, 6 of us visited Jaffna, stayed at my home, and travelled around. We took 3 bikes to see around Jaffna.

Chinthana & Sunimali, whose “How I Met Your Mother” story also starts with me, took the big bike and ended up getting together. I was on my own basic bike, and was paired with Eranda, a guy from Bhanuka’s department. Bhanuka & Lashini naturally took the third bike, which was my aunt’s. It was like a mosquito, with a top speed of 30 or something.

So at every place in Jaffna, four of us would reach there first, look around, take photos, spend time and decide “dan yamuda?”. That is when, Bhanuka and Lashini finally arrive “tuk tuk tuk” on that mosquito bike.

This is the Traffic Test. That is, if you can get stuck in slow traffic with your partner, and enjoy that experience, then you will have a great married life.

Hike Test - Camping stories

Next is the hike test. Hikes often don’t go according to plan. You always mess up something. If you can go on multi-day hikes with your partner, you can handle anything in life.

Bhanuka and Lashini have gone on countless hikes and camping trips. I am fortunate to be part of many of them. One day, he called me at 3.30, when I was at a lecture. “Hadissi camping ekak yanawa. Madulsima. Uba enawada?” Within 1 hour, I got ready, and we barely caught the night mail. In all the rush, we couldn’t bring enough tents. Then it started raining hard. So, eight of us slept in a 3-person tent, on top of each other, in pouring rain, without a single complaint.

The new year of 2018 dawned on us on Delft island, where we had camped. We tried to cook fresh fish, messed up and ended with a porridge of fish bones. We ate that, laughing, without complaints.

When we hiked Great Western, we forgot to bring water. After hours of thirsty hiking, we found this tiny stream that looked very dirty. Bhanuka and Lashini sat down and drank straight from it, no questions, no complaints. It was quite fortunate that the four of us didn’t catch some weird virus from that water and start another global pandemic that day.

Through thick and thin, whatever situation we found ourselves in, Bhanuka and Lashini were in the same team, finding solutions together, without blaming or complaining. This is what made them legendary in the university, the gold standard of relationships.

Wrapping up

There’s a saying: Many of us die at 25 and aren’t buried until we are 80. That is, when we get married, most of us stop enjoying life, travelling, and being fun and silly. But Bhanuka & Lashini will keep hiking and camping, and will live every moment of their lives to the fullest, with each other by their side.

I will always be there for them, like they were there for me. I wish them the happiest married life and wish them luck for their further endeavours.