20 odd aracnut saplings
October 26, 2007 by empy
My parents were teachers in government service and they were posted in the southern most Kanyakumari District. So I had to spend part of my childhood with grandparents from both sides. Papa’s parents too were teachers and lived and served at NMLP school in Kanakappalam and I spent two years with them doing my 5th and 6th grades. We had a two storied house there which was very large and some land where invariably people came to do household works. It was the custom there for the land lord to provide them with food and beedies (hand made cigarettes) as they worked. I as a little boy had a chance to handle beedies as it was given to workers. Secretly I used to use the opportunity to smoke.
Once I felt like smoking and no workers or beedies were available at the house. So I made a secret plan. I went to the garden and climbed an aracnut(a nut used instead of or along with tobacco) tree (branch less lean tall tree) and cut a whole bunch of aracnuts from the tree. But I needed only eight or ten for my needs. Quietly I took what I wanted and gave to my friend for our purpose and buried the rest under some sand and dry leaves. No one knew anything of what happened. And I never went back to that place for some time. It was a successful venture! And I forgot all about the incident. Months later I happened to pass by the place where I had buried the rest of the aracnuts. To my surprise I found twenty odd saplings of aracnut tree standing one upon another in the place where I buried the seeds! I was shocked to the core. But no one knew how it came there and no one asked me any thing about it. So I knew none doubted me for anything and I escaped any punishment. But this incident taught me a great lesson. How true are the words of our Lord in Mk.4:22 which we read, “For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested; neither was anything kept secret, but that it should come abroad”. Surely a day is coming when every secret is going to be made public. Let us be prepared either for rewards for good or punishment for evil!
