Murali
Portrait of Murali. Photgraphed when he visited Kootunkal on the funeral day of Mathukutty chittapan
Memory Tree
The year was 1982 and it was after school hours on our way home when my cousin Johnson and I took a detour to a house called Manackal at Thycatusserry village. There, Kerala Social Forestry department was distributing saplings for all who were interested. Saplings of Perumaram, Gulmohar, Manimaruthu, Mahogany, Nelli, Mango and a variety of other plants were distributed freely. We were late and therefore we could grab only a few remaining saplings. I got some Perumarams and Johnson a Manimaruthu. We both did not like what we got as Johnson wanted a tree for wood and me a flowering one. So we decided to exchange them and did so happily. That Manimaruthu today is 35 years old. Over the years, she had grown into a full tree, bloomed and painted the sky in violets, dropped flowers, shed leaves and withstood all seasons. The other day, as I watched the tree standing tall in our front-yard glistening with fresh beautiful leaves, all memories visited me again. They were fresh and beautiful too...
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