‘Most sublime person’

The initials A.M.S. stand for Annesley Mervin Sigismund Perera, and to me, this represents “A most sublime person”. Annesley was a scholar, well versed in Latin and it is appropriate to define this word, based upon its Latin roots, which is “the quality of greatness beyond all possibility of calculation.”

The traditional definition of greatness, according to Sir Francis Galton, is grounded in achievement. Annesley, certainly met this definition in full. He was a distinguished old boy of St. Peter’s College. After finishing school, he distinguished himself in the Public sector, in the Ceylon Civil Service, distinguishing himself as Secretary to the Ministries of Health, Defence and External Affairs, culminating in his service as Registrar General. He subsequently distinguished himself in the private sector as well, when he served as Managing Director of Reckitt and Coleman; E.B. Creasy and Darley Butler. In these capacities, he made friends with many high ranking officials in Sri Lanka and throughout the world, especially Switzerland. Many may not know this, as one of his core characteristics was his humility. In doing so, he embodied the superior man as defined by Confucius as one who was, “modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions.”

As far as he was concerned, the word “M” in his name stood for magnanimous. He was tireless in helping others in all walks of life.

Yet, if he had to choose one word to define himself, it would have been love. To paraphrase one of his favourite poets, John Keats, “Love was his religion.” As far as he was concerned, the word “M” in his name stood for magnanimous.

He was tireless in helping others in all walks of life. He never was too busy to put in a good word

Nowhere was his love more evident than in the roles he played within his own family. He took seriously Pope John the 23rd s belief that, “the family is the first essential cell of human society.

for somebody to help them to get a job even after he retired.

Nowhere was his love more evident than in the roles he played within his own family. He took seriously Pope John the 23rd s belief that, “the family is the first essential cell of human society.”

He was a devoted husband for 63 years to Naomi. Indeed, the two of them were ideal for each other. They both loved to entertain at their home in Sri Lanka. While he chatted to business connections, she was the perfect hostess. While he loved to sing, she loved to accompany him on the piano. Like Yin and Yang, they complemented each other to perfection.

He was a strict and loving father to his three daughters. He inculcated in them the key principles of faith, compassion, humility and hard work that he held so dear to his heart.

He led by example of what a good marriage should be. He always had time to balance work and family, and was there to support his children in all their endeavours. As a grandfather, he brought the joy of music into their lives at an early age.

One of the most indelible impressions of him was the life and soul of the party. When he moved to California, one of his favourite pastimes became horse racing. He always perused the paper and carefully selected his trifectas and exactas and kept his fingers crossed that one day, he might ac- tually select the “Pick Six.” He had been a champion bridge player. When he came to U.S.A., he had no one to play bridge with, so he started to play 304 instead, with his grandchildren.

He graduated from the University of London with Honours in English in 1940. As such, his love for the English language and its intricacies was profound. His writing, whether poetry or prose, was poignant and evocative. He set the standard for his grandchildren when he got his poem “A Clarion Call to America” was published in the National Library of Poetry in 1995. There was no English question that was so esoteric as to stump him; his brilliance in this arena was unsurpassed. He was such a literary scholar that he could quote Shakespeare off the tip of his tongue.

This faculty was not dimmed even in his last illness; when his home health nurse misquoted Shakespeare, he even in the midst of drifting off to sleep, immediately corrected him.

Lastly, on a more serious note, he was a very spiritual person. He instilled in all his grandchildren the importance of God and Church in their lives and taught them by example to live as good Christians.

He specifically taught them to trust in God, no matter what came their way. As he so quaintly put it, “God does not give us more than we can handle.”

Whether one appreciated all of these qualities of A.M.S. Perera or just some, he touched one’s heart and left his imprint upon our lives.