Page 110 - Musings 2021

Perhaps I am only a pillar to them. However, unlike the dogs, the humans do seem to
understand my presence.

As a coconut tree, it is my duty to provide coconuts, which is something humans these days
misunderstand. They think that I produce coconuts only for them. The descendant of the fine
man who used to pluck coconuts from me in the forest days plucks coconut from me today.
His family has always depended on me for their living. But unlike his great grandfather, he
does not have the respect, humility, or the ability to be satisfied. Every time he climbs, he
clears out everything I have to offer, not considering the fact that there are others who might
need it. He sells it all in the market. I am only a mere tree, I shall accept the reality and move
on.

In the afternoon, when the children leave the school, they gather around me, some scribble on
me, some scratch the bark. There is this little girl, who is picked up by her mother every day.
Her mother buys her one of my coconuts from the market. The mother has to force the girl to
drink it because she is too ungrateful to understand that the coconut had grown. Every time
she would scrunch up her nose while drinking it. Maybe she didn’t find the water sweet.
Many like her, drink water from the coconuts, without any joy in them, and once they have
had all the water, they dump the coconut near my root. Time passed, and I never realized how
ungrateful and greedy humans had become. But, I am only a mere tree, I shall accept the
reality and move on.

Occasionally, a politician would visit our part of the town. Those are the times of great
preparation. The same men who had cleared out my family would come to ‘beautify’ the
trees. During such times, they would clear out the trash from around the root, and splash me
with water. But then, they would apply white paint on me and would hammer posters onto
me, completely ignoring the fact that I am a living being too. All of this is overseen by
policemen who suddenly show concern for me. Usually, they would be complacent, and
would even dump their cigarette buds on me.

However, I am only a mere tree, I shall accept the reality and move on. It’s almost as if I am
no longer a tree, just a pillar that exists for the sake of it. The love, reverence, value, all is
lost. I am a tree, I do not speak, only hear. I do not do but am acted upon. This stillness has
made me very receptive to the surroundings and has made me knowledgeable.

Or so I thought.

One day, a giant excavator appeared, with some very scary-looking electric equipment. The
men bought out the equipment, dressed up as plastic insects, with goggles, masks, and plastic
clothes. And after a minute it was apparent why. The machines made a piercingly irritating
sound, with pieces of wood flying everywhere, as the cutter of the machine-made contact
with a fellow tree. It was hurtful, what was happening to another loved one. That was when I
realized my time had come. What a journey it had been. I thought of the forest days while
expecting to undergo a painful death.

Irrespective of how things turned out, I got to experience a change of era. Now, I could
reunite with my lost family, in a forest perhaps far far away from this mess. That was when
the dogs seemed to want to break my meditation. One of the dogs charged at the vehicle,
almost as a bull would. Then another dog followed suit and another one. Soon, the divided
clans united to produce an orchestra of barks that surpassed the noise levels of the machinery.

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