The invisible chikoo tree

Deepa Kiran

My sister and I were delighted when our grandmother arrived from Thanjavur. She had brought along a special gift this time. She opened her palm and showed us the gift. They were brown-black Sapota seeds. “I am gifting you both a Sapota tree. I have brought you the seed and you must now sow it and grow the plant in your backyard.” We had seen Amma tinker around in the kitchen garden but we had never attempted gardening.

We both chose two opposite spots in the garden, dug the ground, planted the seed, covered it up with soil and watered the earth. We were informed that we must continue caring for the seed by watering it. Excited about this new unexpected responsibility, we both made sure that we remembered to water our seed. After about three weeks, my sister, Divya’s seed peeped its little head out. The sapling was beginning to grow! “Oh no!” I cried, “My seed has not grown.” The elders told me not worry. “Different seeds grow at a different pace. Wait, Deepa”, they repeated. Wait I did. I waited for four weeks and even five. Slowly the others began to worry too. “Did you remember to water every day? Amma asked. “Are you sure that that is the spot?” asked Appa.

“Of course, Appa”, I shouted. “I am very sure.” I stomped up to the spot and quickly dug it out. “I know this is the spot. I told you. I know it! Why won’t I know? After all, I dig it up every day to check how much it has grown.”

The whole house burst into laughter, for they had discovered the secret behind my absent Sapota tree!

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The role the teacher plays is much like the role of the one watering the plant. The teacher gets to water the plants and care for the seeds but often the anxious parents are in a hurry to “see” the proof of growth and in their anxiety, they can actually end up damaging the process of development itself. The work of the teacher shows results much later in life, when the tree is fully grown.

We have been sharing stories to share with children. While this story is enjoyable for children, it has a deep impact on parents. It is very useful to help them see their anxieties and the consequent pressure on the teacher-learner transactions.

Ask the children

1) Did you find the story interesting?
2) What did you like best in the story?
3) What was funny about the ending?
4) What happens when we dig the soil and check the growing seed? (Science concept)

Ask the parents: (if you are sharing this with parents)

1. We understand and laugh at the foolishness of the child who digs and checks the Sapota seed but do we understand our foolishness when we ‘dig and check’ the little growing child we have at home, and when we question the school/teacher for lack of results?
2. Are we willing to trust and be patient?
3. Are we willing to make time to choose the soil and the correct spot suitable for our child, dig the soil, cover it and regularly water the seed?

Activity: Diary writing – reflect

In these times of instant gratification, this story can help draw the children’s attention to the idea of patience over time and faith in the process. Children of grade four and above can be encouraged to think about these notions and pen down their thoughts.

1) What was the narrator’s attitude or approach to the project given to her by her grandmother?
2) How did her attitude affect the result?
3) Have you ever felt like the narrator in some situation?
4) Have you ever taken care and waited patiently like the narrator’s sister?
5) Think of some things that take a long time to materialize.

Tips for telling

1. The story has been told in the first person. You can therefore share it like a personal story. The children love it when teachers share stories from their life.
2. Add some details about the house, the grandmother and her quirks as well as about the other members of the family.
3. You could also detour and embellish the story with some interesting trivia about life during your childhood. For example: Those days we would be given one rupee and a steel bowl. We’d cross the bridge over the stream and go to the other side where the ice cream seller sold his homemade ice cream.
4. As we are all aware, children love to hear episodes from the teacher’s life and will listen wide-eyed.

Role play

1) Have a regular role play of performing the story as a skit.
2) Role play with rewriting:

• Rewrite the story from the point of view of both the seeds.
• Let the seeds become the co-narrators and let them tell their story.
• Encourage the children to imagine what the seeds must be feeling. Let the seeds speak to those who are growing them. To add humour, the seeds can also speak to the audience once in a while, commenting on the folly/wisdom of the grower.

Thus this story could provide not only an engaging storytelling and language learning experience, but it can urge the child to reflect and respond. Writing skills can also be effectively introduced through the response activity.

The author is a storyteller, educationalist, writer and founder of Story Arts India. She is a resource person with the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, training teachers in government and private institutions on using storytelling in the learning environment. She can be reached at storytime@deepakiran.in.