Coconut palms!

My parents having migrated to the northern part of Kerala from the 'central Tranvancore' as it was known then around 1950, came to settle in a village, Keezhillm. They came to work in two schools, in response to an opportunity offered to them to work in a setting, where teachers were not easy to find and the schooling opportunities for children was less than what it was in central Travancore.  

Having lived in rented house for a few years, they bought a land, which was mostly barren. We still live in the farm house, which was modified a few times. For Ann and me it is cottage for us now. Their first effort was to plant coconut trees in the property. They brought the coconut palms to the village! It took another five years or more before others in the village felt assured of the prospects of growing coconut trees !

Th first generation of coconut trees is at least sixty years in our property. During the last five years, we have lost about thirty of them, due to disease, lightning, etc.

Yesterday, while this wood cutter was splitting the coconut stem, to make firewood, he recalled to me how my parents were keen on farming. His parents planted coconut palms seeing the palms grow in our garden. 

I was around five when this was happening. My earliest memory of the coconut palms is of my father showing me to make balls out of palm leaves! I played with neighbouring children cricket and handball with the balls made of palm leaves.

I looked forward to the coconut climber who used to come once in three months to pluck coconut, when he would drop some tender coconut! The tender coconut was not available on the road side then, as it is now. So it was a treat to have a drink of the tender coconut and eat the kernel inside! Usually my mother de-husked the coconut when she needed one for cooking. She kept the coconut water for me till I returned form school. It was a refreshing drink . 

We use the firewood now mainly to dry nutmeg seeds! The coconut palms in the compound would get used as firewood after their yielding season of coconut is over! The serving spoons we had then were made out of coconut shells. The shells were also used as 'mugs' in the kitchen to carry water. There was no plastic mug at that time. The mattresses we used were made from the fibre of the coconut husk. The left over outer bark of the coconut was used to burn as firewood or left in specially dug pits to keep the soil moist during summer months.    

Since Anna and I came to live in this cottage we planted twenty coconut plants. We are waiting for them to yield coconuts!

Every house in our village has coconut palms, thanks to the successful farming initiated by my parents. 

M.C.Mathew(text and photo)