Chafa tree

Chafa tree stood blossomed in front of my house. It wasn’t much tall. Must be of just 7 feet. It had branched out in all directions. There were the green leaves and fragrant white flowers with a tinge of yellow between them. I would pluck those flowers in the morning. They had a great impact on me. I felt very close to these flowers. I could see my God in it. Such was its impact on me.

No one knew who had planted this chafa tree. When I had moved into this house it had already grown up. I was always grateful to the unknown person who had planted this tree. He had left behind a fragrant gift for me. Indeed planting trees is an unselfish act. You never know whether you will be there when the tree will flower or bear fruits. But still you plant them. May be as the seed of God is present in all of us, ultimately we are the one who will receive its fruits and flowers.

It was rainy season. Ganpati festival was around. I prepared a Ganpati idol made of clay. My sisters had come down for the festival. The chafa tree was in full bloom. It gave hundreds of flowers. We plucked them. I know some may think plucking flowers as cruel. But if do not pluck them, the tree will shed them the next day. So we plucked the flowers, made beautiful garlands for the elephant lord. My elder sister made beautiful rangoli of flowers at the door step and also near the platform where the lord was seated.

Chafa tree bonded us together. In the morning we would pluck the flowers, make the garlands and rangolis. While doing so we would relive the memories of our childhood. We would remember those days when we were kids. We remembered our songs and we remembered our fights. Once this morning routine was done I would go to my work and return home late in the night tired. So I must give all the credit to the Chafa tree and its flowers for bonding us.

Soon the sisters went to their homes and in another few months rains left too. Only I and the Chafa tree remained back. I was feeling lonely. I longed for that laughter, that mirth which was present only when my sisters were around, only when there was some one you could call family. I was lonely and unhappy.

I guess Chafa tree felt lonely too. Its leaves began to turn yellow. It had begun to shed its leaves. I thought it was because of lack of water. I began to water the plant twice in a day. Yet it was shedding its leaves. One day not a single leaf was left on the tree. I felt so bad for it. My gardener told me that some one had poisoned it. I felt as if I was poisoned and going to die soon. I couldn’t see the tree dying with every passing day. But what could I do? There are no doctors for trees. I prayed fervently that the tree may survive. But it remained there barren with just the branches and no leaves.

It was a December morning. The air was cold. I got out of my house for a morning walk. I saw the barren tree. There were tears in my eyes. Then I spotted something white at the end of the branch. I ran and had a closer look at it. My joy knew no bounds. There was a tiny bud, a sign of life, a ray of hope. Soon the tree flowered again. I too got married and started a family. Such was the impact of the Chafa tree. 

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.