Up The Jamun Tree

 This story was originally meant for Women's Web's March's muse of the month writing cue, “To want is to have a weakness.” (from The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood). The prompt required a word limit of 800, since I had already missed the deadline, I decided to ignore it :-)

The tree outside Meena's window (Source: Deviantart.com)

She stared at the Jamun tree outside her window. The slender branches swayed as the leaves rustled as if they were playing “chinese whispers” with her. ‘Whoosha, Whoosha, Whoosha” each leaf whispered, some highpitched in their excitement while others drooping with their feeble tone. All seemed to want to speak to her.

“Just like the stories from those books all girls in the class talk about” thought Meena.

Fairies, pixies and gnomes, some hiding under toadstools, others disappearing behind bushes and climbing up trees. Trees like the one in her yard; with leaves whooshing all the time as if there were little elves hiding on their branches whispering and inviting her into their own abode. Full of jamuns in the summer, she wondered if the tree would bear some other fruit as the season changed, just as the faraway tree all the girls spoke about did. She peeked out, wanting to talk to those beautiful creatures her imagination had given birth to, but quickly jerked back and pulled the curtains when she saw Sneha, her neighbour, staring at her from her balcony.

“Oh why was she there now, just when I wanted to talk to my friends and live those tales all my classmates talk about…what she talks about!” cried out Meena opening her Science textbook and doodling over the chapter on cross-pollination.

Her mother would stop by any time to check on her, to check if she was studying or wasting her time dreaming of what she called nonsensical creatures.

She longed to read, wanted it more than she had every wanted anything. All those Nancy Drews, Percy Jacksons, Hardy Boys and Enid Blytons the girls spoke about. Esp. the Enid Blytons; they sounded so magical, as if they could transport her to a different world. A world that consisted of kids who went on adventures, girls who secretly had midnight feasts in their boarding schools, toys that came alive at night, goblins, gnomes, pixies and fairies who went about their business as soon as it was night fall…. She wanted to lose herself in that world, be one of those kids, be one of those girls, secretly watch those toys and all those magical creatures… if only she could, she always thought.

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“To want is a weakness Meena, all those books girls your age read are a waste of time. Study hard and you will do well in life, those books will not take you anywhere”

Every time she had asked her mother for books to read, she had got to hear these words. She was not allowed to be a member at the local library; she had to study all the time. Her mother even disapproved of the School’s mandate for Sixth standard students to take a book from the school library every month to write reviews and essays.

Meena glanced out of the window hoping to steal a moment to step into her imaginary world before her mother came up to the room for her evening check. She looked lovingly at the tree, trying to imagine a tree house on the broad branch that tapered right near her window when from the corner of her eye she saw Sneha again.

“Oh why was she still there! Cant she just let me live in peace!” muttered Meena just as the door to her room opened and her mother stormed in.

“What are you doing looking out of that window? Are you upto your silly antics again?” yelled her mother, continuing her usual torrent about how if she didn’t take studies seriously she would suffer in higher classes.

Meena had learnt to turn a deaf ear to her scolding but this time she was worried that Sneha would have heard every word of it. Her mother had been very loud.

“Always lost in the world of those fairy tales, wanting those books all those girls in your class read! They won’t score marks reading those books; those come only with hours of studying. How will you manage when you get to Tenth standard? How will you score? You have to become a doctor don’t forget that. Have you seen what a free hand Sneha's mother gives her? No wonder she is always third or fourth in class, can never beat you to the first place!” Her mother went on.

By now Meena was praying desperately that Sneha had not overheard any of her mother’s rant, esp. the last part of it.

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She had put in a lot of effort to make the girls in her class think that she read as many books as them. She tried to participate in the discussions Sneha and the rest in her class had during the recess about wishing chairs, faraway trees and circuses. She had even proclaimed to the class that there was a rabbit just like Brer rabbit in her own garden. Living next door to her;Sneha had given her a curious look then, Meena had realized she had gone a bit far with the rabbit story.

She had made up all the stories based on what she had heard being discussed by all the girls. It was so easy to catch up when you liked something so much, she had thought. Suddenly her mother’s voice broke through her revelry, telling her to complete her lesson and be ready for the revision questions she would make her answer at night.

Meena looked out of the window, hoping Sneha wasn't around. Her balcony looked empty but she thought she had seen a shadow disappear across the curtain. All she could do was pray that Sneha hadn't heard anything. The care she had taken over the years to fit in with the rest of her class was at stake; she desperately wanted to maintain the image she had so lovingly created.

Days passed into weeks and Meena got busy with her exam revision. When she felt bored of studying she would look out of the window, first checking to see if Sneha was around. Once the coast was clear, she devoted her attention to the tree imagining the homes of Silky the elf, Dame Washalot and Moon Face, names she heard from the recess discussions of the Faraway Tree books. She imagined herself befriending the residents of the tree and visiting the different lands that came on top of it every now and then… just as the girls decribed from the books. So lost she would be in her world, staring at the Jamun tree, that she would fail to notice the shadow that fleeted across the curtain in the house next door.

Once in a while she would jerk out of her thoughts and remind herself that wants were a weakness, she had to study and top the class like she always did. That was her mother’s want and she had to live up to it.

She continued to talk to her classmates about the rabbit that lived beneath the Jamun tree and the different Enid Blyton books she had read. She even described the tree which reminded her of the Faraway Tree. All the girls involved her in their talks, listening with rapt attention each time she spoke. All except Sneha.

Sneha had begun treating her differently. She was friendlier than usual but continued to hang out with her own group of friends. But there were tiny things that Meena couldn't help but notice, like how she would warmly squeeze her shoulder once in a while and offer to share her eraser or pencil whenever she forgot her own. There was a change in Sneha’s behaviour, she had noticed; especially the look she gave whenever Meena spoke about the books she read. It was hard to decipher but it almost seemed like she knew what was really going on in Meena’s head. A shudder would run through Meena each time she got the look, it made her wonder if Sneha had overheard her mother that evening a few weeks before.

The final exams came and went and a week later the results were announced. As always, Meena topped the class; Sneha had come in fourth. Happy with her results, Meena’s mother had left her alone for the evening and gone out to run some errands. Meena was elated, this was the best gift she could ask for, some alone time with her thoughts, to focus all her attention on the Jamun tree and the pretend rabbit hole below it. She had just settled herself on the window sill when the doorbell rang.

Irritated with the disturbance she quickly ran down the stairs and opened the door. To her surprise there was nobody at the door. Angry, she turned to close the door when a speck of brown caught her eye. Lying on the doorstep was a bulky package with an envelope attached to it that was addressed to her. She picked it up, locked the door and returned to the room. With a lot of curiosity she opened the letter and read,

Magic Faraway Tree Series

Dear Meena,

Congratulations on topping the class once again. You have always been the brains of the class and deserve to top it more than anyone else. Here is a small gift to celebrate your result. Hope it helps you immerse yourself in a different world, one that has had you enchanted forever. Enjoy this new world because you so want to be a part of it.

Always remember, a want is never a weakness, it is our ability to define the person that we are; that we want to be.

Your Friend.

With trembling fingers Meena opened the package that accompanied the envelope. In it was the Faraway Tree Series. Instinctively she looked outside the window just in time to see Sneha disappear from the balcony.