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THE CARE-WOMEN'S FEATURE SERVICE FELLOWSHIPS, 2008(Personal Account)
 | 'I was fed throughout my stay on the farm on homegrown vegetables plucked right before my eyes'
By Aparna Pallavi
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One thing is sure when you visit a village, people never fail to give you gifts. Not the expensive, cold and useless gifts that city dwellers recycle at weddings and birthday parties, but priceless, warm gifts - vegetables, fruits, exotic seeds, little gems of knowledge, insight or humour.
All the three stories I did under the WFS-Care Fellowship were done in villages, which meant just that, more gifts. Only due to the unusual nature of the practices I have documented, the gifts were unusual too.
While working out my first story on indigenous seed conservation, I was given, among other things, a gift of four huge 'ramphal', an orangish red fruit whose insides are like those of a custard apple, but with a slightly sour taste. Concerned that I might damage them, I carried the fruits virtually in my arms throughout the journey; I had received them in the first village I visited. Back home, my daughter wrapped them tenderly in cloth. Two days later, my daughter, husband and I invited our closest friends, aged between seven and 50, to savour the now ripe fruits. And we realized that despite the variety in age and background, all the eight people present were eating 'ramphal' for the first time.
While working on my second story in Solapur, I received several varieties of dried wild and indigenous gourds, full of seeds. Children brought me a handful of beautiful red and black glossy seeds called 'gunja', and, for some reason or the other, felt compelled to keep bringing me endless pockets-full of ripe tamarinds. I was fed throughout my stay on the farm on homegrown vegetables plucked right before my eyes.
But the third story about uncultivated vegetables turned up the most interesting experiences. In one village I received a huge bag of green 'umber' - a fruit known to cure anemia. In another village they gave me dried roots of 'khobarvel' - which are supposed to be a good substitute for tealeaves. In a third village, I was given two handfuls of a bitter gourd-like fruit called 'ikdodi'. Anusuyabai Meshram gave me the seeds of a vine that I was told keeps snakes away and, if allowed to spread over the roof, keeps the house cool.
On my return I dutifully cooked the 'umber' and brewed 'khobarvel' tea, only to find that neither my family nor I could get the stuff down our throats. It was only after I had thrown away the tea and the curry that I received a phone call from the NGO. The person on the other side informed me that the florets inside the 'umber' should be scrapped off before cooking and that 'khobarvel' tea is not to be brewed with milk.
The 'ikdodi' fruits are still in my fridge. I will wait for another phone call before I try to cook those!
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