Man and Tree

This is also part of my real life experience.

In a society where no one bothers much about cutting the trees, I came across one person my life who had will and large heart to say no to it even when there would be a loss of space for his venture  and might involve a high cost!!

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Our factory team was not a big one and hence taking the family with children every year for a night stay in a place was not a big problem for us. One year  the outing was at Silver Sands in ECR, Chennai and the next year we went to the TTDC camp site at Mahabalipuram. The bonfire and the dancing and the team games indeed exceeded the previous year’s celebrations. After some years  we again  thought of booking the same place for the annual outing. But to our dismay we were told that it was no more a camp site and in it’s place a private party is planning to construct a hotel.

I was sad. For one thing we cannot go camping again to such a wonderful sprawling place and the other most important thing was that the hotel construction by a private party would imply felling of the 900 odd trees of the camp site. Private parties would tend to maximize utilization of the space and thus their profit. What will happen to the breezy place? To birds living among those trees? That day was indeed a sad day for me.

After some years I happened to go to that hotel to meet a friend staying there and  thought about the fate of those trees but my astonishment knew no bound when the 900 odd trees of the camp site welcomed me with varied birds chirping and hopping around them!

And the wonder of all wonders was awaiting me  in the 24 hour coffee shop!

The restaurant had been built around a huge pongamia tree (punga maram) and it seemed to rule the place with pride!! To give me an added bonus the hotel owner had pasted an article at the entrance of the restaurant titled the ‘Karna of trees- the pongamia’, (punga maram)   eulogizing the tree. Wonder struck I read that sheet in which he had listed the medicinal use of each part of that miracle tree!!  This strange man had gone a step ahead to make the the tree lover in me jump with joy!!

After this experience, I had the opportunity to stay in his heritage  hotel in Swamimalai, a small temple village near Kumbakonam where I read  a mini book written by him I The book titled ‘Man and Tree’ is in a diary form on the  construction of the Mahabalipuram hotel. I loved that part of the book where a mother bird and it’s little one converse expressing their worries and sadness  as people come in increasing numbers to start the construction work and were not sure about their fate once the trees were felled to make way for the buildings and their boundless delight when their big tree became the centre of the show on the inaugural day!!

By his actions Steve Borgia, the tree lover and Heritage Hotel chain owner,  made a right statement  that  “this is the place of trees and we are just living in there.” For his part he had added more trees to the place!

My worries about the TTDC camp site at last  were put to rest and Steve indeed had enhanced my joy by great measure by his ‘tree loving’ actions!!!

Thank you Steve!!