Dr. Dayasiri Thenuwara (1938-2022): A tribute from his sister Chandra

“Feeling lost in a sea of sadness,” to quote my brother Daya, when he faced the recent cruel blow that fate meted out to him, and then, mercifully, surprisingly, suddenly, rescued him; leaving us, lost and bewildered in a sea of sadness.         

In England, his successful involvement with transcendental meditation belied his humorous, music-loving personality; he surrounded himself with beautiful creativity in souvenirs collected from all over the world from the extensive travels that he indulged in with his family.      

As a young man, his love of sports, water sports in particular swimming, water-polo, rowing, captaining his medical college team to victory at a prestigious, Colombo Rowing Club competition, brought much pride and joy to our father who was a great believer in sports.

Daya’s love of wildlife from his schooldays influenced me as a result of the books he brought home from the Wildlife Society Library. As a young doctor working in the villages of Sri Lanka he took to bird-watching and in England, this led to his learning to make exquisite drawings of birds in action.

When Daya emigrated to England with his wife and three little sons, we, his mother, brother and two sisters thought that we had lost our doctor-in-the-house. But Daya, your inherent sense of duty went far beyond the call of duty. On your holidays, back with us in Sri Lanka, you took time off to check on our health problems, made appointments with specialists and even accompanied us to see them. These holidays also brought us an avalanche of gifts each time, generosity and hospitality. 

Hospitality, which enabled us to have holidays in England, enriching our lives. Every time any one of us had a health crisis, you were with us in a flash, for our mother, our late sister and for me. Our mother’s last illness brought you straight from the airport to her hospital bedside—this enabled you to speak to her and she had the joy and comfort of knowing that you had come once again – this time, just in time.

On a very personal note, Daya, you enabled me to re-visit “your beloved England” as you teasingly put it, by filling endless visa forms, so many times, sponsoring my visits to England, enabling me to wander through the gardens of Kent and the museums and art galleries of London. Words are inadequate to say ‘thank you’ for all this and much more that has been left unsaid. You will reap what you have sown and we shall surely all meet again. 

Dear Daya, goodbye for now, with much love, your sister Chandra.

Chandramani Thenuwara