Green Gift

'Rakshabandhan' is the day of expressing love and care. It is one of those occasions when families get together to share fun and love filled moemnts, good food and nice gifts. Selection of the most beutiful 'rakhi' for brother and most beautiful gift for sister are those shopping experiences which one always looks forward to. The delight in the sister's eyes upon unwrapping the gift and the pride with which brother flaunts his 'rakhi' are those feelings which help strengthen the relationships.

Gifts surely play an important role not only on such occasions as 'rakshabandhan' or 'bhaubij' but also on many other events. There is a practical point of view put forth by many which advocates cash gifts. Yes, cash gift is surely the most useful gift one can receive and utilize it as and when needed. But then... it lacks the charm. I once read a statement made in an advertisement that said - after a while, she will not recognize which of those notes in her purse is yours.

The real fun begins with guessing what will your loved one like. And then comes the exciting hunt for getting what you think will excite your loved one. The better you know his or her choices more the chances of you buying the perfect gift for your loved one. The best part is when you reveal the gift and see the delight in your loved one's eyes.

If gifts play such an important role in our relationships, then why not think of something that truly has a personal touch? And in case of what I am talking about, there is not only a personal touch but also the Midas touch of nature.

Gardening is my uncle's favourite hobby. He had planted adenium in his home garden even before I was born. A few months before last year's 'diwali', he gave me seeds from the pod that grew on his 30 years old plant. I sowed the seeds and to my delight, many of them germinated. Several seedlings emerged from the soil. Most of them survived and within few days the pot had 4-5 tiny adeniums. They looked delicate. I knew they are slow growers. But at the same time I was also aware of how big they can get once they fully grow. In spite of being fond of plants and gardening, I wasn't sure if I could grow all the 4-5 plants in my home garden. Hence, I decided to offer them as gifts to Amol's cousins on occasion of 'bhaubij'. The botany department of my college needs to be thanked for this idea. They used to arrange potted, decorative plants as gifts for chief guests to important functions.

All it took us to prepare our green gifts were 3 small, rectangular pots and some efforts to transplant the tiny adeniums into these smaller pots. Amol's cousins happily received the gift. They all have carefully placed their respective pots in their home gardens. Our plants have become taller and greener this monsoon. We are eagerly awaiting for them to blossom. Whenever they do, they will beautify our homes and our relation!

- Kalindi Amol Joshi 

With Amol Vishwas Joshi (Interior Designer, AAkruti Interiors, Kandivli, Mumbai)

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