The heavy winds carried the weight of big water droplets as they splashed against the dry parched earth. The lightening clashed with the dark menacing sky and my dear nephew listlessly stared out of the window. He had been refused the permission to play video games again, and as much his 7 year old self could muster the expression of sulking he was giving so.
"I don't understand why can't I play, I am bored" he screamed for the fiftieth time, and my sister nodded her head in exasperation. "You tell me how can I let him play that dreaded game again?" she asked me as I silently sipped my warm tea, "Can you help me, can you take him out somewhere for sometime? I don't know what to do". She looked at me with such a defeated expression, that I silenced all my inner fears on handling a brooding hyperactive 7 year old. "Of course, let me take him home, I will get him to play with me or do some drawing", I replied a little too cheerfully and my enthusiasm was met with a smirk.
With a lot of effort and cajoling and finally with the promise of letting him play on my computer I managed to get him in my car. As we drove ad mist the splashing rain, and the whizzing sound of the wipers furiously wiping away the downpour, I asked him, "Abhi, why such a bad expression, see outside, its such beautiful rain, look at the trees as they dance with the breeze" before I could continue my lyrical self, he looked at me with a "are you out of your mind" expression, "Please masi, lets go fast" And we passed rest of the drive in silence.
Once we reached, the rains had stopped and in my effort to occupy him, I mentioned about my new kitchen garden and he reluctantly agreed to go see it. As we stepped on my backyard, he suddenly grew excited, pointing to my small green tomatoes, he asked "Is that a tomato?? The one that I eat masi?" I took him near the plant and showed it to him, "yes abhi and soon it will become red like the one you eat", his eyes lighted up, and he stopped at my mint plant, "Ohhh I eat that too, this is nice" with a quiet smile I followed him, he next stopped at my lemon tree and with a look of amazement pointed a ripe grown dark yellow lemon to me, "Masi, look at this, its a lemon"!
I kissed him on his cheek, "Yes Abhi it is, I didn't know you like vegetables so much", "I don't like eating them masi, but this is exciting to see them like this, can I also grow them?" , I smiled at him and gave him a small rose plant and some small seeds, "Hold them tightly, lets plant them and then you care for them daily."
He walked beside me, holding hand and in the other clutching the seeds tightly, "Ok masi, what do I need to do?"
I sat beside him, as he excitedly dug out the mud and sowed the seeds, then covered them with the mud. I then took out a pot and asked him to fill mud, and like a professional at work with full concentration he filled it, and then with such tenderness he placed the plant. He was in such a happy state, that he ate vegetables that day easily in dinner! and my sister wondered that miracles do happen!
Next day, he came running after school, and asked me what to do, we watered the plants together and he roamed around in the garden, running after butterflies, studying the plants and their leaves. After ten days, like his routine when he came to the garden, the small red bud of the rose plant had grown into a beautiful resplendent flower, his bigger joy was seeing that small plants were now there in place of the seeds he had sowed.
He hugged me with such joy, and then went and kissed the flower and the small plants!! I knew watching him that just like me, his love story with the plants has started!!
This is my entry for Nature's Friends..more such stories of connecting and discovering love for nature at http://www.kissan.in/
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| www.muppet.wikia.com |
"I don't understand why can't I play, I am bored" he screamed for the fiftieth time, and my sister nodded her head in exasperation. "You tell me how can I let him play that dreaded game again?" she asked me as I silently sipped my warm tea, "Can you help me, can you take him out somewhere for sometime? I don't know what to do". She looked at me with such a defeated expression, that I silenced all my inner fears on handling a brooding hyperactive 7 year old. "Of course, let me take him home, I will get him to play with me or do some drawing", I replied a little too cheerfully and my enthusiasm was met with a smirk.
With a lot of effort and cajoling and finally with the promise of letting him play on my computer I managed to get him in my car. As we drove ad mist the splashing rain, and the whizzing sound of the wipers furiously wiping away the downpour, I asked him, "Abhi, why such a bad expression, see outside, its such beautiful rain, look at the trees as they dance with the breeze" before I could continue my lyrical self, he looked at me with a "are you out of your mind" expression, "Please masi, lets go fast" And we passed rest of the drive in silence.
 |
| Image source: www.honestcardealer.com |
Once we reached, the rains had stopped and in my effort to occupy him, I mentioned about my new kitchen garden and he reluctantly agreed to go see it. As we stepped on my backyard, he suddenly grew excited, pointing to my small green tomatoes, he asked "Is that a tomato?? The one that I eat masi?" I took him near the plant and showed it to him, "yes abhi and soon it will become red like the one you eat", his eyes lighted up, and he stopped at my mint plant, "Ohhh I eat that too, this is nice" with a quiet smile I followed him, he next stopped at my lemon tree and with a look of amazement pointed a ripe grown dark yellow lemon to me, "Masi, look at this, its a lemon"!
 |
| Image source: www.backyardideas.biz |
I kissed him on his cheek, "Yes Abhi it is, I didn't know you like vegetables so much", "I don't like eating them masi, but this is exciting to see them like this, can I also grow them?" , I smiled at him and gave him a small rose plant and some small seeds, "Hold them tightly, lets plant them and then you care for them daily."
He walked beside me, holding hand and in the other clutching the seeds tightly, "Ok masi, what do I need to do?"
I sat beside him, as he excitedly dug out the mud and sowed the seeds, then covered them with the mud. I then took out a pot and asked him to fill mud, and like a professional at work with full concentration he filled it, and then with such tenderness he placed the plant. He was in such a happy state, that he ate vegetables that day easily in dinner! and my sister wondered that miracles do happen!
Next day, he came running after school, and asked me what to do, we watered the plants together and he roamed around in the garden, running after butterflies, studying the plants and their leaves. After ten days, like his routine when he came to the garden, the small red bud of the rose plant had grown into a beautiful resplendent flower, his bigger joy was seeing that small plants were now there in place of the seeds he had sowed.
 |
| The resplendent red rose |
He hugged me with such joy, and then went and kissed the flower and the small plants!! I knew watching him that just like me, his love story with the plants has started!!
This is my entry for Nature's Friends..more such stories of connecting and discovering love for nature at http://www.kissan.in/
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