"My name is Seliyan. I live with my wife and our two children in a rural village. Before this disaster, life was not easy, but we managed. I am a farmer and also work as a day laborer whenever work is available. Like many families around us, we had small vegetable gardens and livestock, which helped us earn a basic income. My wife works only occasionally, so most of the responsibility to provide for the family was on me. Even though our income was limited, we were able to meet our daily needs through farming, selling milk, and daily labor work.

After 26 years of brutal civil war in Sri Lanka, a new era of peace, reconciliation, and development began in May 2009 when the conflict ended. But in a small village called Iruttumadu, people were left with the worst scars from the war. The village was largely destroyed, and healing seemed impossible.