This is a unique Guava
Tree on our doorstep that produces “unripe” fruit! Yes, the unripe, green and hard guavas are plucked by the young working girls and their mothers
(housemaids), bitten repeatedly and devoured immediately by them. Sometimes,
their moms help them when the girls are unable to extend their small arms to
pluck the fruit even if they try to raise themselves by standing on their toes.
When we relocated from
the official residence to our newly constructed house in the year 2020, a 200 square
yard area, the only green piece of patch we could develop, according to the
bylaws of housing society, was outside of our house, on either of the shoulders
of 12 feet wide road the house is located on. We planted some fruit trees on
it: A Guava tree on the side of our house, and a Fig and two Lemon trees the
other shoulder across the street. Besides, other flowery plants and trees on both
shoulders were also planted.
The guava tree has grown
into a sizeable height (about 10-12 ft.) since then and is still growing tall.
It started giving fruits in nearly a year after its plantation. There are
plenty of other fig and lemon trees in our area comprising about 700 houses
(more than half of them are already under occupation) but I’m yet to find any
other guava tree here.
The guava fruit is very
common in Pakistan and its production occurs mostly in the winter season. The
sweet and tasty guavas of Larkana, Sindh are very famous in the country. The “ewer”
shaped of these guavas is peculiar and distinct from other “round” shaped guavas
grown in the rest of the country. It is comparatively priced cheaper than other
fruits like Apple, Pomegranate, Grapes, etc. I can fairly say that people from
across all the income groups, including the lower income groups, consume a
large quantity of guava every year. Unfortunately, it becomes very expensive
during the month of Ramadhan due to its high demand, and unethical and illegal
hoarding by the venders.
Since our guava tree is planted
and raised on the State land therefore, anyone passing through the street can
see the guavas hanging on the branches of the tree, and hence, they cannot
resist themselves from plucking them. Sometimes, neighbors and passersby seek
our permission for plucking them. We haven’t barred anyone from plucking the
fruits though, and consider the tree as a public property.
This guava tree is
particularly very attractive to the housemaids and their children equally who swarm
the housing society, coming from the nearby slums, for their paid jobs
(cleaning, laundry, cooking, etc.) every day in the morning time for working in
the houses. They do not let the guavas turn fully ripened. These people pluck them
instead, as soon as they think the fruit can be eaten even if the same is
harder, green (yet to turn ripe, change the color from greenish to yellowish
and become softer) and unripe.
Initially, we tried to
convince the children and maids to wait till the fruit gets fully ripened but
the temptation of plucking a fresh guava has been just too strong for them even
if it was not ready. Besides, it costs nothing and they have all the liberty to
pluck the fruits. We just watch their glowing and ecstatic faces joyfully and
blissfully.
