Poinsettia – a poignant expression

While in a cab on my last visit to Singapore, my driver in a bid to engage me in conversation said, “You from India but which part?” When I said Delhi, he quipped that it was the city with four seasons. Despite spending a better part of my life in the capital, this thought was never in my conscious mind. All of a sudden I was consumed with a sense of privilege and pride.

Moving from one season to another, an average Delhi ite experiences a see saw of highs and lows. From a change of wardrobe to rising levels of pollution, to pest infestation, water and electricity issues-the changing weather has its ways of making its presence felt. The common cold and flu is probably the commonest problem that the common man faces with even a slight change in temperature! For a better part of the year, the unbearable summer heat forces people to move into a ‘hibernation’ of sorts. With the onset of autumn and winter, one can sense a palpable shift in the joi de vivre of city dwellers. The cooler temperatures, the radiant colors of the flora, the string of festivities do wonders to boost the morale and enthusiasm in people.

I celebrate my favourite seasons by adding colour to my otherwise frugal garden. For close to nine months I try desperately to ensure that the spirit of the greens does not sag through the rising temperatures. I feel like a supervisor in an organization trying to motivate their team to keep working with a lure of getting them a bonus at the end of the year! So come November, I make a beeline for the nursery to buy chrysanthemums, roses, dahlias and poinsettias. Like the bonus that gets used up in no time, the survival time for these gorgeous plants is only a month or two, but it still makes the effort and expense worthwhile.

One such poinsettia that I picked last December has completely outdone itself. It seems to possess an unusual but heartening self multiplier plan! It’s been close to 5 months now and my Christmas plant (as it is commonly known) has been fighting to stand tall as the only dash of color in a sea of greens. Not only has it survived its expected life span, it also continues to sprout tiny green leaves every now and then as if to flaunt its unfailing spirit. It is indeed a miracle plant!!! While the other green plants are already feeling the heat and finding it difficult to manifest their full potential, this tiny Poinsettia seems to be doing quite well in comparison. I’m sure the greens must look down at him in complete awe and wonder of what makes him tick against the odds. I can almost hear them say, “Your time is up, what you are waiting for? Christmas??J” Every time I get pensive of what lies ahead, this one foot red top wonder peers at me to fill me with a renewed sense of hope and optimism. It makes me marvel of the countless ways in which the forces of life and the universe are able to communicate to us.