Sarungale Lyrics by Harshana Disanayake

The kite goes floating high in the sky,
the idda tree’s flowers have bloomed and sway in the wind,
my little sister and I stand watching,
and it strikes me, we may never have this again

Along the fence the little moon goes leaping,
tiny fish flick their fins and swim away,
my little sister and I stand watching,
and it strikes me, we may never have this again

They tell me not to cook my play-rice,
they tell me not to run and leap on the riverbank,
they tell me not to romp in the open paddy field,
“don’t, don’t”, the scoldings ring out constantly

I long to become a flower and carry fragrance,
to float across the sky like a cloud,
to talk to the trees, the vines, the birds,
just let us stay in our own little world

A wistful, tender song in a child’s voice about the fragile freedom of childhood. The child watches a kite drift high in the sky, idda flowers swaying in the breeze, and stands with a little sister taking it all in, only to be struck by a grown-up sadness: we may never have this again. Even in the middle of the moment, the child can feel it slipping away.

The world of the song is all small wonders, the little moon leaping along the fence line, tiny fish flicking their fins in the water, the kind of details only a child, fully present, would notice. Against that comes the litany of the second half: don’t cook your play-rice, don’t run on the riverbank, don’t romp in the paddy field. Don’t, don’t, the scoldings never stop, and each one fences the child’s world in a little more.

The last verse is the child’s quiet wish against all those noes: to become a flower and carry fragrance, to float across the sky like a cloud, to talk to the trees and vines and birds, and above all, please, just let us stay in our own little world. Sung by Harshana Disanayake to words by Erin Jayasekara, it is a gentle, moving plea for children to be left the freedom to simply be children.