WINNER WINNER SALAD DINNER

They have been together for three years now. Soon after the initial excitement of their romance died and the hustle bustle of everyday life took over, they realised they didn’t have too many everyday activities in common that they shared. They were on different diets - she ate meat and he had quit. Their exercise routines differed as well - she preferred to swim while he went on walks. They worked at different hours - she was out of the door by 7 AM while he didn’t need to get to the office till after noon. Evenings were a bust too, for he would visit his parents after work and didn’t get home till after 9. She spent time with her parents on the weekend. Some days, they were lucky and could share a meal together. To top it all, they even had to resort to sleeping in different bedrooms - she was a very light sleeper and he snored. Apart from these small inconveniences that created cracks in their intimacy, they believed that their love was deep.

‘’As deep as the roots of a Shepherd’s Tree. It has the deepest roots documented. About 230 feet deep. I looked it up earlier.’’, he says to her triumphantly one night, after coming home early from work. They are cooking together tonight.

‘’Wow that sounds beautiful. Where does it grow?’’, she asks him as she washes the salad leaves.

‘’In the Kalahari Desert. South Africa. How big do you want the potatoes chopped?’’ He responds

‘’About this big’’, she gestures using her fingers before she continues ‘’The desert? I don’t know if I want our love to be like a tree in the desert. I imagine a nice green forest.’’ She tosses the leaves in to the bowl and moves on to check on the boiling corn.

He watches her as she turns the burner off and reaches into the hot pot to quickly pulls out a kernel, only to toss it between her palms, the heat clearly hitting her hard. ‘’You’re crazy. Use a spoon, silly.’’

‘’I wasn’t thinking. Next time. What about a Banyan Tree?’’ She asks him.

‘’Yeah, that could work too. Roots below and above. And the shade as well. I’m using the thyme. Do you want some rosemary as well?’’ He says as he looks down and at the two bottles in his hand.

‘’No, it gets stuck between my teeth. Thyme will do. Wait, I’m pulling up trees with the deepest roots on the phone.’’ She pulls up an article and props it up on the window in front of them. ‘’Tamarind Tree? A slow growing tree whose roots can reach up to 80 feet!’’ She reads.

He has begun grating the carrots while monitoring the roasting veggies. ‘’Too tangy for my taste. I bet the roots are too.’’ He pauses to scroll down on the phone before he resumes. ‘’Look at the next result, the peepal tree. I like the shape of their leaves and it says their roots tend to spread a lot.’’

‘’There is someone in my office named Pupul. I’ll think of her everytime I hear peepal.’’, she says with a frown. ‘’Shall I toast pistachios or would you prefer some sesame tonight?’’

‘’Pistachios. What sort of a name is that, pupul? So weird.’’ He ponders out loud.

‘’Weird to you, perhaps. It’s just a name. Anyway, listen to this, ‘The neem tree has the strongest taproot underground system. It has one primary root that goes deeper into the soil, while the other secondary roots, emerging from it, have lateral growth habit. The primary root can go deeper twice the height of the tree to absorb water and minerals. This helps the tree to stay green in all the seasons.’ She reads out aloud. ‘’How about that?’’

‘’Umm…No. have you ever tasted neem? It’s bitter. List out some of the other options? I think I saw a mango in there too.’’ He says as he pops a piece of the roasted potato in his mouth. ‘’Perfect!’’ He triumphantly declares.

‘’Well, there’s mango which is on an average about 6 feet deep but can go upto 25 feet. The Deodar Cedar can generally spread up to 30-35 feet from its trunk base. That’s pretty deep as well…Oh look, the Indian Tulip tree. It’s a city tree - popularly found in Kolkata, Mumbai, Chandigarh and Chennai.’’ She holds her phone in one hand and reads as she tosses the nuts on the pan with the other.

‘’They look done, the nuts. Give me the phone, I’ll read.’’, he says, as he frees up her one hand. She goes on to place the nuts, veggies, corn, some olives and a few other ingredients in a deep pan. ‘’A runny dressing with some pesto and date jam?’’

‘’’hmm..’’ he nods in agreement while scrolling down. ‘’Hey! This article is about trees from India. No wonder. I was wondering why the oaks and pines were left out from the list.’’ He exclaims, as though the discovery has released him from a deep worry.

‘’Haha our love is global, yeah?’’ She laughs. ‘’Here, taste this.’’ She pushes a spoonful of dressing into his mouth.

‘’Oh wow. This is yumm. Whats the sweet stuff with the pesto.’’, curiosity showing on his face.

‘’Date Jam. I told you. Pay attention, or our love will be only roots and no fruits.’’ She jokes.

‘’I wouldn’t have guessed, but it tastes quite good!’’ He says approvingly. The phone is forgotten.

They look down at the salad.

Suddenly, he is struck with a stroke of genius and says ‘’Forget the roots. Our love is like this salad. Colourful, Fresh, Vibrant…’’

She continues, ‘’Sweet, Varied and Homemade’’

‘’And healthy.’’, he adds, pulling her close and kissing her on the forehead.

S enjoys looking for wonder in the synchronised dance between inward and outward experiences of life. She weaves stories about how that which is termed as ‘the other’ or the ‘outward experience’ seamlessly comes to merge with that which is termed as ‘the self” or the ‘inward experience’