THE OLD TREE

THE OLD TREE

         Mohan had retired from government service after a glorious innings of  nearly 30 years  as a professor of a reputed college  and he was bracing himself for a relaxed retired life in his ancestral home in Tellicherry  Kerala, where he had spent a better part of his childhood studying in a local government school.

            The house was typically an old mansion with many small  rooms shaped like an ,   ‘L’  the smaller of the wing was the kitchen and the dining room. There was a cemented portico in the entrance and  its front portion afforded a panoramic view of nature in all its glory.  About a hundred yards in front as the road wound to the portico , there was a very  old tree with its roots and branches stretching very wide and casting a huge shadow beneath it . It might have been more than a hundred years old  and there were lots of mythical folk lore around it. Mohan used to watch its branches swaying to the wind  and any number of birds and small animals were its regular habitants. As he watched mesmerised to the sound coursing through its branches and leaves with the chirping of birds and squirrels ,he could not ignore any number of men ,women and children resting underneath its shadows There were many photos he had taken in all angles that he viewed it as having a life of its own and an eco- system around it.   Everyone one who came to the house could not but recognise the tree  and a mention of its positive eulogy  was more a rule than an exception,

            The tree later  fell into disrepute when a teenage girl staying a little away  hanged herself on its branches and then the village folk still felt that her ghost was haunting around  its precincts and the house. It produced such a weird fearful  effect that none rested beneath it, in the wee hours of the evening and the villagers felt that the tree branches and leaves were withering and the birds and small animals rarely frequented it .

 Mohan ,who always lived in the city was not a believer of such rumours and dismissed it as mere   mythology that made its rounds due to fear installed by religious rituals and folk lore and the gossip of old women’s ghost tales. He had read a lot of literature on paranormal  experience ,and had an open mind on it and was ready to experiment with it . His wife believed in these rumours and mentioned it very often cautioning him not to go near the tree and sit underneath it . So, out of curiosity he decided to install a powerful camera with audio in its branches with a view beneath ,above  and surrounding it. Watching it he felt that many people  sat beneath it to rest and there was no dearth of birds and squirrels frequenting it . He once found a fairly big snake underneath it, but later it disappeared. He was surprised to see a boy and girl ,both lovers sitting underneath the tree in the late evening.  He also enjoyed the audio of the sound of the birds and squirrels ,the local gossips, the tit-bits and the cooing talk of the lovers. When he mentioned to his wife about the video camera ,she responded “Ghosts appear only at night, not in the morning or late evenings and after some thought she said … your camera doesn’t view or show them’.   He was himself sceptical, nevertheless he changed his vigil at night.

 His scrutiny at night for a week till 12 PM drew a blank . Once he got up at one o’clock at night to go to the rest room and through his bedroom window which overlooked the tree, he found someone lying underneath it . He switched on the monitor of his PC and found a figure lying crawled beneath the tree. It was a full moon  night and it was fairly visible with enough light that it had an apparition of a  silhouette of a woman. He watched for some time and as it  moved, he ignored it as that of a lengthy shadow of an animal ,like a dog or a sheep. The next day as the clock struck one ,he peeped out of the window and saw the same silhouette of a women. The following day as usual when he peeped out it was not there as it was not clear because it was not a full moon night . His daily recon at night did not reveal anything unusual . He decided after much thought to renew his attempt on the following full moon day after 29 to 30 days.

On his usual  morning jogging taking photos along the way with a powerful camera  , he usually had tea in a shop just opposite the house of the girl who had committed suicide near the old tree. Apart from the usual gossip there was a rumour that  after midnight a young girl rests near the tree during the full moon days.

He  had decided to go and physically verify on the next full moon day underneath the tree if he found any such apparition in the camera monitor. After an early supper ,he left to sleep to get up by midnight and finding the apparition he opened the monitor and confirmed it . He was also able to view it in his android phone . He wore a  black jerkin with a hood ,took his camera and a flash light and slowly alighted from his house without his wife’s knowledge and trudged to the old tree, looking at the tree’s  camera video in  the mobile phone . The moon was at its brightest and visibility was excellent . He cautiously tiptoed behind the tree, stood behind its big trunk and slowly peeped in ,not to disturb the apparition . He saw it clearly and stood rooted to the spot. It was as though a girl was crouched and lying under the tree. The cold breeze and the creepy  sound between the bark and leaves added to the eerie feeling . He slowly moved in front to take a photo of whoever was lying down there . Then he looked up and the moon’s light drenched his face, he readied his camera with a flash and shot it .He then looked at it and then it stuck him .It was the shadow of a bark that twisted and made a right angle and it showed as a shadow beneath with the moon’s light abruptly, clearing and visible indicating on both its end. He laughed to himself and sat on the shadow with his legs  straightened out. Then he raised his head ,hearing a hissing  sound and was shocked to see the huge  cobra with its hood  in front a little away near the shrubs. He froze and sat still without even breathing and slowly it slouched to the ground and wriggled away into the foliage . After witnessing  all the beautiful night scenes and hearing the hooting of the owl and night life for nearly half an hour , he slowly got  up and straightened ,adjusting his camera pouch and almost trebled to see the silhouette of a girl in the veranda of the house in the light of the moon  where she had stayed before committing suicide . He automatically raised his camera and took a good photo with a flash. He  rushed home and entered noiselessly and lay down near his wife who was fast asleep.       

The next day after a  tumultuous sleep filled with fearful dreams, he walked to the shop in front of the house where he had seen a ghost appear . As he was seeping his tea ,a little weary , he noticed a girl and a boy alight from the haunted house. They walked long and his intuitive sense and curiosity made him follow them at a distance. Was it the girl whom he had seen yesterday in the house? They proceeded to the bus stand and boarded a bus to a nearby village . He followed them and they got down and proceed through a village lane and entered a home. They seem to be too young and appeared to be a brother and sister. He summoned up enough courage with a plan. 

He  knocked  the door and a middle aged lady and a gentleman opened it . He came straight to the point after seeing both the young boy and girl. He introduced himself and after comfortably sitting on the sofa he mentioned the house and wanted to purchase it as it was near his house and bordering it.  The gentleman said ‘Sorry it is not for sale or lease as it is legally involved in an heirship problem”. “I shall pay the amount  to both the parties and acquire it if both the party agree to it” . They discussed and retorted “Are you serious?” “Yes, as it borders my land”. He made a call and returned. “I spoke to my brother and he spoke to his brother in law and they are not willing to sell it . I am sorry”.

Mohan was relieved . “ It is OK. Moreover, I heard it is haunted ,as a girl from the house had hanged in the old tree opposite it”.  They looked at each other and the children laughed . “It is just a rumour peddled  to prevent any one buying or occupying it” “But ,I saw the ghost yesterday in the house at 1am. “That was me .I had come out after seeing a flash light when I got up to go to the rest room. We come there once a month to clean it and as it was dark and late yesterday, we stayed there’. retorted the girl.   I showed them the photo I had taken . They confirmed it was their daughter  . 

Mohan returned home convinced that there was no ghost and it was a rumour spread for the convenience and curiosity of everyone and the villagers for the sake of telling tales to impress  all.  Tales of ghost usually have lots of fans to hear and spread it.  The old tree unfortunately became a victim of their  fear mongering ,but people who did not believe it frequented it and some persons like Mohan searched proof to negate it.

Mohan made it a point to sit underneath it, whenever he went for a walk and take snaps in all its glory.  He then installed a cement bench for everyone to sit beneath, to rest their tired limbs and gossip to their hearts contend. After some time, it became a lover’s bench. Mohan also continued his watch in his monitor with renewed interest, as he had nothing  better to do in his retired life.