Flight of Freedom

Like all other trees in the neighborhood, the big mango tree standing proud and erect in front of my house too had started shedding its leaves. The fresh green leaves that had been the epitome of life a few months back, had gradually started acquiring a yellow hue and finally one by one, they started to wither and fall off to the hard earth below, under the contemptuous gaze of the young, green leaves basking in the sunlight.

Well… dead leaves need to be cleared away and just the other day, I had embarked upon the particular task. A few swishes with the broom and suddenly it was as though I stumbled upon pure magic! I had inevitably disturbed a whole cluster of ‘appuppan thadis’ (known as Pappus in English which is nowhere as romantic as its Malayalam name). They were till then securely lying under the protective cover of the dry leaves. Thrilled by the first taste of freedom and spurred by the gentle breeze that was on, these charming winged seeds which resemble the long, white beard of a grandfather, started their individual journey towards unfamiliar places…

As I wistfully stood and watched them soar away to invisibility, somewhere I realized my innate desire to fly free like these winged beauties... to travel to lands unknown, to places unseen, to mountains and lakes and forests and valleys… to be one with nature and to drink in its splendor… to embark on a journey to discover myself…to a place called freedom!