The season of Cashew fruit

I am reminded of my childhood when cashew was a cash crops that people cultivated in every space in their property. 

The coconut palms which has replaced cashews in the recent years were uncommon then. My parens had about thirty cashew trees in our property which yielded abundantly in each season. 

During the summer holidays of April and may, it was my morning routine to gather the fruits from the trees by plucking them with long bamboo poles which had a hook at the end. I remember fooling my parents by climbing the trees to pluck them, which was forbidden. OI did not escape from being caught! I was denied to be outdoor for two days on one occasion!

The cashews were separated from the fruit for drying and the fruit was given to the cows which they relished. They ate them like a desert. 

My mother used to make fire and roast the cashew nuts. I often to remove the shell to gather the nuts form inside. That was our desert after dinner every evening for months. In fact we had several kilograms of cashews that we gave away some to friends who visited us. 

From the pulp of the fruit, Anna made juice this time, which tasted great. 

It is the third year that we have cashew fruits in our two trees, which we planted about five years back. For Anna, it is a great delight to see fruits in different trees that we planted in our garden since we started living here nine years ago. 

I wonder about the habit of living in farm land! There are farms which are well kept with regard de-weeding the land and fertilising the plants and trees. Ours is not of that standard since the gardener had to be discontinued due to his inconsistent work. 

A farm land is a sign of great hope because plants and trees give their fruits in due season. The away we invest on the land is the way it yields.  

This is a season of desert for people in India with the second wave of COVID. 

It is a call to be mindful of others beyond the usual! It is one time when everyone is our neighbour! It is the time to spread our goodwill till it costs us!

M.C.Mathew (text and photo)