When The Stars Appear On Roads

Yeah and during the day...have a look

Starry starry road is fine but i lack in my prowess to show how the starry starry sky appeared during the early morning walk and what drew me towards the tree which i passed daily but never cared to linger upon had it not been for its starry starry blooms.

i went close to the tree just close enough to feel if the profuse stars emitted any fragrance if at all of any kind but did not get any hint of any perfume nevertheless the flowers fascinated me and hence i looked here and there for branches hanging close to the ground so that i could take clearer shots of the blooms.

i found one lone one which was a little above my five foot one but surely i can manage i mumbled within myself and proceeded but not without taking a long distance shot as a practice exercise to see if i can take one clear one. i know i need to improve upon that but really don't mind putting it here.

A few steps closer and another shot of the same.

Not much of a difference though but i managed a wee bit of what in photographic jargon they i suppose call 'Bokeh' . Those lights that looks like diffused balls of light...i guess...hmmm...

Okay flowers...the starry flowers...they have to be captured...in all their splendor and beauty. So click...click...click i carried on. Forgetting where i was...the time or the place...

For when i started it had not yet shone but while returning home i remember feeling the need of shades.

First the single among the lot...uff it is so difficult to select that one so i just aimed my focus on a random central one...maybe because i liked the way the buds were positioned next to it. All in a row, from sizes large to the smallest clinging neatly to the stalk that arched gracefuly. The pinnacle of which had a pagoda/dome shaped green yet to be a bud, bud...

And not only did i catch the bee but i have like a miracle managed a fairly good shot of a mature flower which perhaps had lived it's life and had just dislodged itself from the parent stalk to lay quietly down below and decorate the road with a rangoli of sorts to make it look like how it looked...starry starry. (Rangoli-flower arrangement on the floor with real flowers).

i am so fond of this but had i known about this magical moment perhaps i would've focused much better. i know not. What i do know is that perhaps photography is just like how life is. Before you know it the moment has already passed you by. Nevertheless i have no regrets about this shot. i like this suspended in the air starry flower with a neat hole in the center. i was wondering if i could collect some of this and string it into a mala a garland and perhaps decorate my Shiva Linga with it. Laters before i leave.

Two other interesting happenings worth mentioning before i quit. 

As i wanted to look up again to see the starry starry sky i found the Mr Cute monkey silently watching my proceedings without disturbing me. Perched up high on that huge Peepal tree. Yeah Ficus religiosa tree or the Buddha tree.

i was alone with this cute Simian when i started out but was unawares of Mr Cute but by the time i had finished i was hands and hearts full. The good couple that stayed in that bungalow next to the tree the blooms of which i was engrossed taking a picture of had perhaps walked out of their gate to see to some repair work being done. We didn't know each other but Mrs and Mr Jamshed invited me in and between exchanging introductions and pleasantries i was offered one of the most amazing ginger ale i've ever had in years now.

It's been two years that i've been in this colony and this was my first great Indian hospitality comeback . Despite my invitation to my own abode i don't know what reasons prevent people from making those warm connections again but whenever i have approached even my neighbors i am sort of interviewed by a peon who answers the door. One who informs about his madam/ sir either being busy or not being home.

 So this ' Starry Day  ' also became a Ginger Ale' day. Thus a memorable chapter in the history of my stay in this colony where i am residing now. Mrs and Mr Jamshed have already carved an indelible imprint in my heart. Words will fail to do justice.

No wonder then i am always a very optimistic person. Kyunki har din naya din for me. (Meaning each day is a new day).

i am also blessed that i have on me this wonderful book by Mr Pradeep Kishen. Which means this time i did not have to trouble Mr Google at all. 

In his book ' Trees Of Delhi A Field Guide ' he explains in all details all the names and characteristics about this 'Starry' tree. 

CHAMROD. Yeah that's what he gives it as with " No English common name...".

Chamrod aka Ehretia laevis.

i read in the field guide all there was to it. But there is no mention of the flowers having any fragrance. Therefore i have decided to take a night walk too. Just to find out for myself if the blooms are nocturnal. For in nature many trees like Alistonia scholaris aka the Blackboard tree/ Indian Devil tree emit fragrance in the evenings or night and not during the day. 

Also i promise myself to be regular in my walks because Mr Pradip Krishen talks about the fruits too,

And i really would love to take a picture of the bright orange berries which are slightly larger than the peppercorns.

i remember seeing those berries and boy! am i glad i actually took a picture of one with the berries too. They were small and green. Have a look...

My reflective thought on my way back was a Serbian proverb as i returned home...hands and heart full thinking about the tree...the stars it had, Mr Cute on the other tree and last but not the very least Mrs Farhat Jamshed and Mr Jamshed in that bungalow next to the 'Starry Tree' , " Be humble for you are made of earth. Be noble for you are made of stars."