A European couple I met
It was last month when I had won golden opportunity to join the Third Annual Intensive English Course held in Kandy where situated about hundred and ten kilometers away from Colombo a commercial city, we stay and study, of Sri Lanka, an Island in the midst of Indian Ocean. Kandy was the last Kingdom of Sri Lankan and it possesses beautiful scene of hill sides in which various trees grow and colourful wild animals dwell. It lies in the midst of the hills that cover with green ever.
We Myanmar monks of thirty-five members put up at Kandy Myanmar-Tooth-Relic Temple during the Course which took fifteen days or eighty-four hours. It was conducted by Mr. Ken and Mrs. Visakha Kawasaki and their assistances Mr. Lal Medawattegedera a Sri Lankan, Mr. Matthew Scherer and Mrs. Deena Scherer the American. They all seize good natured in and out side of the class that we would not neglect on them even apiece of their behavior and character. The lecture hall was a main hall of Buddhist Publication Society, BPS, and we all have to think of to whom it may concern of BPS. The trainees were from Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Vietnam. Of them we Myanmar were majority. Our lunch in every day was offered by lay people from both local and foreign countries. We wished them including our teachers to be strong mind and sound body without end.
Mr. Ken and Mrs. Visakha Kawasaki the couples well-matched I prefer to mention are very rare teachers I had ever seen though the rest participated in training were nice. They are Europeans and very pious Buddhists. I would dare say that they are real Buddhists in accordance with my eye witness on them, and so do my friends’ who close to them long. They now live in Kandy with a native Sinhalese family. Mr. Ken born in England is Japanese whilst Mrs. Visakha Kawasaki is a pure English lady, I was told. Both are considered now over fifty, yet they are so well preserved that we think as young. They ever say they are very fortunate and lucky to become a good husband and wife. They on the other hand are proud of being Theravada Buddhists in deed. In their house, there are so many kinds of Buddha statue from various Buddhist countries they had visited, and there are also the most famous venerable monks from Myanmar like Venerable Sayadaw Vicittasārābhivaṃsa and so on.
Though we had very short time to meet them, from them we had not only very good moral lessons how to treat others and environment but we acquired how to teach various trainees with patience and smile in colourful situations. Demonstration and illustration in their teaching methods is one of the best I preferred. They are in high spirits to give helping a hand to others in need of their help. Because of their good-will and effortless we would tried with our burning desire though the course was very difficult to concentrate and tired due to extremely bad weather. Our studying with keenly and industriously was appreciated very much by all teachers.
Once, we visited their house and they welcomed us warmly. We saw their house is graceful with the Buddha’s shrine room; home-library and furniture are keeping necessarily. They treat us with juice, but we preferred their open-minded and honest behavior to the guest. They are always of aware the rules and regulations of lay people in respect to the Buddhists and how to pay due respect to the Buddhist monks in every occasion.
It is a law of nature we meet and depart one day. It is needless to be anxious being happened so. We had prime time with Mr. Ken and Mrs. Visakha Kavasaki and good relationship with mutual understanding. One day the time will come again to us to meet each other in some places of the world.
With Mettā,
Reverence Uttamānanda
February 19, 2011 
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