I
garrulously talk to my family members about Gulmohar when the summer draws
close. I talk about it the whole of April and May. It is like waiting for a
family member’s coming home for summer vacation. . I wait for its arrival as
soon as the rays of the sun get warmer and fades the green by the hedgerows. I know
they bud and the first flowers appear by the end of April. It is full bloom
during May. It is a feast to the eyes and one of the ecstasies of summer. .
."Incredible!”
says my daughter when talks of Gulmohar
ensue
out of nowhere in the midst of a different conversation.
The
best part of a long walk is getting to see the Gulmohar ; appearing
everywhere.. along the dusty pavements,
along a breezy walkway, peeping from behind buildings, looming large clearly
outlined against the blue summer sky... The
soft slant of the evening sun plays on the heap of orange red flowers …yellows,
oranges and reds paint in deep tones the
dusty lane and the mind's canvas.
Bright
flames of passion suddenly burst forth on an unassuming tree that had stood all
the year just green like the next one beside it and then it is colours that
swing before the eye in a long walk or a lazy drive... deep orange...red..the
flamboyant flame of the forest interspersed with green leaves standing up in all
crowning glory..
Images
swing to the mind.. the summer rain of childhood, the wet streets strewn with
the orange blossoms knocked down by the rain... the trees bending down with the
weight of the water... the flowers scattered across and the flooding gurgling
waters carrying the blooms down the lane…
Every
dream had an orange bloom appearing in some corner of the mind…
Last
year I planted a Gulmohar in the backyard of my home... the same month I
realised I had conceived my younger daughter. It has grown tall now....probably
some years from now I shall see one morning, a spurt of orange suddenly
appearing amidst the green jungle of trees behind my home….probably it might
take longer... and my younger daughter will have become a girl and my older
daughter a maiden... I shall wait….wait for them all to ripe, for their
flamboyant colours to fill my eyes, with all love and passion in the heart.
