Parents Reunited With "Baby 81"
Murugupillai Jeyarajah and his wife, Jenita, welcomed their baby son, Abhilash, back into their family today. "Baby 81," given that name because he was the 81st survivor admitted to the local Sri Lankan hospital in the aftermath of last December's tsunami, had been claimed by numerous grieving families.
The confusion of emotions and hopes from desparate and desolate parents brought to mind the so-called "judgement of Solomon" when the biblical King of Israel was presented with two mothers and two babies, one dead, one living. Each mother claimed the living child as their own and appeared before Solomon to seek a resolution of their conflicting claims.
According to I Kings 3:16-28, Solomon decreed that the living child be cut in two with each woman being given half. One woman fell on her knees and begged the King to spare the child and give it to the other woman. Seeing her love for the child revealed, Solomon declared that she was the child's true mother.
In Sri Lanka, however, there was no King Solomon. But, after much effort and scraping for funds, DNA tests were conducted that verified the claims of the baby's true parents.
According to one radio news broadcast, the child's parents indicated that "the family will break coconuts, scatter rice and slaughter a rooster to give thanks" for their son's safe return back into their arms.
Now I know what Sri Lankans do when they are feeling thankful! Next November I think that, instead of turkey, I'll just send our friends into the back yard to break some coconuts and slaughter a rooster! Oh....it's a cultural thing? Well, maybe we could still scatter the rice...would that be OK?
The confusion of emotions and hopes from desparate and desolate parents brought to mind the so-called "judgement of Solomon" when the biblical King of Israel was presented with two mothers and two babies, one dead, one living. Each mother claimed the living child as their own and appeared before Solomon to seek a resolution of their conflicting claims.
According to I Kings 3:16-28, Solomon decreed that the living child be cut in two with each woman being given half. One woman fell on her knees and begged the King to spare the child and give it to the other woman. Seeing her love for the child revealed, Solomon declared that she was the child's true mother.
In Sri Lanka, however, there was no King Solomon. But, after much effort and scraping for funds, DNA tests were conducted that verified the claims of the baby's true parents.
According to one radio news broadcast, the child's parents indicated that "the family will break coconuts, scatter rice and slaughter a rooster to give thanks" for their son's safe return back into their arms.
Now I know what Sri Lankans do when they are feeling thankful! Next November I think that, instead of turkey, I'll just send our friends into the back yard to break some coconuts and slaughter a rooster! Oh....it's a cultural thing? Well, maybe we could still scatter the rice...would that be OK?
posted by Bird of Paradise at 9:24 PM
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