I was pulled out of the tsunami in Sri Lanka...for a woodcarving apprenticeship...
I couldn’t stay in Colombo for long after experiencing the beautiful countryside. I thought the south coast was the best option – completely deserted and ridiculously cheap.
I settled for a small fishing village on the outskirts of Tangalle. My base was a rough cabana made entirely from the coconut trees that grow in profusion there; this was picture postcard white beach paradise. There was a bed with a mosquito net, a table and chair, an en-suite bathroom and shower; all I needed. I had to cross a dirt track to reach the beach and on the beach I was the only one there that I could see, and I could see for miles.
[snip]
It was a week or more when I received a text from Anura asking me to phone him; which I did. He had talked to the carver, could I meet him in Moratuwa, the next day. Tomorrow! I thought it worth the hassle and the three hour bus journey; it would be a shame to miss the opportunity.
I caught the early AC minibus and arrived at Anura’s well before lunch, which was a treat for me as Anura’s wife is a wonderful cook. After lunch Anura drove me to Moratuwa, a few miles south of Colombo.
Moratuwa is where the wood carving and furniture industry is based in Sri Lanka. It’s situated there simply because they used to float the logs from the hill country down the river to Moratuwa. The sometimes huge tree trunks would be hauled out of the water and worked in-situ.
Diesel lorries transport the timber these days and piles of stacked timber greet you as you enter Moratuwa. Nandascena worked in a furniture factory, on the top floor, where he carved decorative ends to chairs and other furniture and was commissioned to produce individual pieces. He was a short, wiry man with large glasses to accommodate his failing eyesight.
He spoke only a little English and Anura did most of the translating. He offered to teach me for free, there was a piece he has just been commissioned to make and I could do that with him watching over me. The log to be carved was already in place, it was brought in a few days previously.
I accepted his offer and told him I would be back soon, once I found somewhere to live. I thanked Anura and asked him to drop me on the main Galle Road and I would look for a flat or a cheap hotel.
[snip]
It was a long day, but I had managed quite a lot since I set out from the tiny village that morning. The next morning the fishing village I had just left in the south didn’t exist anymore, it had been completely destroyed, but I didn’t know that when I met Nico to catch the bus into town.
As we drove over the metal road bridge the river was swollen, and fast flowing, was it high tide? There wasn’t much of a tidal range here in Sri Lanka, it was unusual. Nico didn’t know and didn’t seem to care or notice.
[snip]
I arrived back at my cabana with bags full of food and coffee. I had missed calls on my mobile phone and received a few texts. That was most unusual, I carried a phone for emergencies only – that must be what this was – otherwise it was my only timepiece for dates or times. I usually had no idea what day of the week it was or what time it was. I had a flight to the UK in a few weeks and that was my only requirement to know the time.
‘Am I okay?’ reads one text from my father. I don’t understand and text him back. ‘I’m fine, Why is everyone asking me?’ ‘Haven’t you heard? There was a tsunami in Sri Lanka.’ ‘No I hadn’t heard, not here. I am fine.’
I went outside and saw Priyan, the owner, lakeside. The lake level had risen by maybe 25 cms and the water was encroaching on the property.
“I just heard there was a tsunami,” I said. “Yes,” he told me, “This morning. It’s all over the news. There is no way south to assess the damage as the roads and railways were all washed away.”
Wow! I was down there yesterday, if it wasn’t for this call to come carving I would have been in a flimsy fishing hut on the beach when the tsunami hit. I later discovered the entire ‘village’ was washed away without trace, but we are not talking bricks and mortar or concrete here; just palm tree huts. Even so, it’s a crap shoot to see if you die if you get caught in a tsunami, as much for what’s in the water column as for the wave itself. If a big rock or other debris has your name on it while you are in the water that would be the end of it, even if you didn’t drown.
I have to report a lot of indifference to the news of the tsunami in Sri Lanka itself. The general spoken opinion of the coastal dwellers that I heard was ‘it was their own fault, as well as their own karma’. Apparently the government had foreseen such a possibility years before, and anyway wanted these shanty huts removed from the coastline. The government had resettled the coastal dwellers, giving them land and building materials away from the coast. They ‘all’ moved inland and built their houses for free; sold them for a tidy profit and moved back to their shanty house on the beach / coast. The locals considered them both stupid and greedy and were unconcerned at their current plight. Not everyone, but most held this view. It was life as normal in the mid-west part of the island, shielded from the impact of the wave by the east and south coasts. In fact it was only in the UK at a friend’s house, a decade later, that I saw footage of the scale of the disaster.
https://mistsofavalon.forumotion.com/t10264p350-the-bridge-way#156073
Did you find out from Rodrigo just HOW and moreso WHY he entered you after his death?? 
But it's all such a bizarre way for him to get it to happen, isn't it? Unfinished business maybe? That is one of the reasons they say spirits don't leave this plane. He must have been really, really determined to get you to follow this path though, leaving before he got around to it I guess. 
It's a shame the shaman you met after he left didn't tell you the how and why when you met her as well. 
be careful what you ask for!
That's why I approached you here. It's all good though. I'll just keep up with what you have to say there as I have been doing. 
