The Cherry Tree

Meet the Author

• Ruskin Bond is an Anglo-Indian Author and poet known for his vivid descriptions of landscapes and insightful portrayal of human emotions.
• Born: 19 May, 1934
• Place of Birth: Kasauli, British India
• Best Known For: He is known for transporting readers to visualise the landscapes of India, and depicts the complexity of human relationships.

Summary of the Chapter

The poem “The Cherry Tree” by Ruskin Bond begins with the poet addressing the cherry tree with a sense of anticipation and care in the seed he plants. The poet reflects that it has been eight years since he had planted a cherry seed in the grass. His motivation for planting the seed was the desire to cultivate a tree of his own that he could claim as his.

“Must have a tree of my own,” I said,
And watered it once and went to bed

After he waters it once, he forgets about it and goes to bed. He maintains a strong belief that cherry trees possess the resilience to thrive even without constant care or daily watering. Unexpectedly without any attention by the end of May during summer, the poet discovers a diminutive cherry sapling emerging from the ground, precisely at the place where he had planted the seed.

It was very small, five months child,
Lost in the tall grass running wild.

The tree is very small, just about five months old, fragile, and vulnerable to various external dangers. Tall wild grasses have grown all over around it making the tiny sapling invisible. The poet describes threatening situations to the tree like:

Unlike the usual ghost story narratives, here the characters are looking at things in a logical manner. They do not get drawn away by the supernatural, rather they try and incorporate this supernatural in their daily life.

• A goat devouring all the leaves of the plant
• A grass cutter mercilessly splitting the plant apart
• The sapling valiantly withstanding the heavy monsoon

Additionally, the poet observes three new shoots emerging from the cherry tree. The young tree struggles against nature to survive strongly however its branches manage to grow fiercely upwards, reaching for light, air, and sun.

Its arms in a fresh fierce lust
For light and air and sun.

The poet waits and observes the tree with pleasure as time passes and the rains arrive. He wonders looking at the tree how it survives despite its pain and hardships. He underscores that nature has nourished the tree allowing it to grow robustly.

Unfortunately, the poet has to bid adieu to his beloved tree as he travels to Kashmir the following year for a season. Upon his return, he is seen thinner, weaker, and in poor health condition. To his immense joy and astonishment, he finds the tree at the door flourishing and thriving. The poet emphasises a contrasting condition here. It has grown six feet high with dark cherries hanging from its branches. This made the poet hardly believe that it was the same tree he planted.

The tree has reached maturity with its fruits glistening like pieces of jewellery in the sun hanging from its branches. The poet signifies that by the following year, the delicate pink blossoms appear which are fragile, and quick to fall even in the slightest breeze.

And next year there were blossoms small
Pink, fragile, quick to fall
At the merest breath, the sleepiest breeze.

In ecstasy, the poet lies on the grass to relax and take in the vibrant nature scene in full swing. He begins by admiring the sky, then the finches darting by, birds that flock in and out of the trees, and the bees that sip the nectar from each bloom until sunset.

As darkness fell, the stars were visible in the sky. The poet could hear the moon moths and crickets serenading the night. The poet extols the beauty of the night and the stars marvelling at the thriving tree he has planted. Immersing in the natural world, he takes pride in being a part of it sensing a deep feeling of belonging and joy.

Yes, I! – praise Night and Stars and tree:
That small, the cherry, grown by me.

Moral of the poem

The poet concludes with a celebration of nature, the reward of care, and the profound satisfaction one can get through nurturing and witnessing growth all over time.

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