Dandelion (ಡ್ಯಾಂಡೆಲಿಯನ್) -Sahana Harekrishna

It was my first spring in Canada, just after experiencing the first harsh winter. Along my walking path, in front of the house, backyard, school ground everywhere these beautiful small yellow flowers had bloomed. I liked them so very much.I did not know the name. I never thought to find the name. I just loved to see them everywhere. The flowers inspired me so much that I remember singing this beautiful phrase of kannada song '' ನೀ ನಡೆಯುವ ಹಾದಿಗೆ ಹೂವಿನ ಹಾಸಿಗೆಯ ಹಾಸುವೆ ……'' to my pet dog when I used to take her for walk. They were mood elevators. They brought smiles and happiness in this foreign land.

But by next spring, I realized how the locals hated that plant and the same flower. Its Dandelion - the Weed !! Ooh… a weed which has to be removed or cut before it blooms. There is a huge set of residents who hate to see Dandelions in their yard. And there is a small percentage of people who love these flowers. They know these dandelions are very important to bees and other animals. It is the first food to insects which have emerged from winter sleep - the hibernation. Dandelions are the first plant to bloom, just after a harsh winter when the land is still hard and trees and plants have yet to give out their leaves or flowers.

My first flower love - never disappointed me even after knowing that people call it - Weed !! I saw those bunnies in my backyard munching dandelion leaves. The big fat groundhog from the neighbor's yard visited our lawn to lunch on the same leaves. When the flowers dried up, my sparrow friends relished the seeds. '' Blow the dandelions '' was the most fun activity for the kids in my community.

An old man next door, one day while talking casually said, people can complain if we don't control dandelions in our yard. Maybe because of this mass fear, I observed how these plants mowed down much before the flowers dried up and went to seedlings. But nothing stopped me from growing them in my yard. I left a big patch of dandelions to feed my sparrows, bunnies and groundhog. It gives immense happiness when they visit our yard everyday. What do you say, ….Happiness Multiplied?!!

Not until one day, my husband came home from the grocery saying,'' dandelions are sold as green leafy veg in the stores, it's edible, check for recipes '', I was unaware that even humans consume it.
Next few days I scrolled through so many recipes of dandelion leaves, roots and flowers on the web. I was not sure what to cook, so my husband gave some ideas of Indian recipes using dandelion leaves. '' Why can't you try ?'', his question pushed me to try a lentil curry with these leaves for the first time. It was a hit and everyone at home liked it. I had confidence and started trying different recipes. All summer mornings, my kids ran to the yard to get baskets full of leaves. The dishes I cooked suited our Indian taste buds. Memory took me back to childhood days when my mom and all the neighboring women used to pluck various plants from yards labeled as '' weed '' and cooked delicious recipes out of them. ತಗತೆ ಸೊಪ್ಪು, ಉರ್ಗೆ ಗಡ್ಡೆ, ಬೊ೦ಬೆ ಬಸಳೆ, ಗೋಳ್ ಹೀರೆ…ah endless.

But eating dandelion leaves has its effects…
Medicinal effects.
And now we know what it cures too.
But,
That is another story for another day.

-Sahana Harekrishna

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Submitted by: Sahana Harekrishna
Submitted on: Sun Mar 10 2024 00:22:13 GMT+0530 (India Standard Time)
Category: Story
Acknowledgements: This is Mine. / Original
Language: EnglishFrom the same author: Sahana Harekrishna

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[category Story, English, This is Mine. / Original]