Do you know how nutmeg grows?
Have you seen its fruit hanging on the tree?
Have you pried the fruit open?
Have you tasted the mace that covers the seed?
I have used ground nutmeg
Many times in my life
To add some flavoring
To make a delicious apple pie.
I have gone to the store
Found the aisle for spice
Went to the "N's"
Grabbed the nutmeg from its place.
I have purchased it at the counter
Alongside my other things
Went home and used a spoonful
In my chosen recipe.
I put it in the cupboard
Then awaited what I baked
When the bell rang
I looked forward to the taste.
The nutmeg container
Then sat on my shelf
Until the next time I called
For a recipe that included itself.
A few months ago in Kerala
As I was headed to my room
One of my friends was under a tree
A stick-like mechanism, she used.
I was curious as to what she was doing
So I went to have a look
At the end of the long stick she had attached a blade
She was using that mechanism
To gather the ripe nutmeg
From the tree where its growth had taken place.
She would spot one that was ready
Then place the device
She would pull and shake
Until it released from the branch
And fell to the ground’s open space.
It hit me in that moment
As I asked, "What is this?"
That I had used nutmeg many times
But I did not know how its fruit looked or from where it came to exist.
I was shocked when she told me
That it was a nutmeg in my hand
We cut it open
After giving it a wash
Then I tasted its fruit
Its mace that covered the seed
So fresh and tasty
I could not believe.
As I went back to my room
After giving the device a try
I thought about my gratitude
For these learnings in my life.
It may seem small
Simple, not grand
But it felt so profound
To further understand.
I thought about how there are so many things
That I do not yet know
About how there is often so much of the story
That we do not see
That is not always shown.
Nutmeg does not grow
In my native place
So I only knew it as the powder
That I can find on the shelf
Of a store along the way.
It is interesting to me
That it had not once crossed my mind
From where does this powder
Come to be; come to life?
I continue to ponder
My experience from that day
As I navigate my life
As I take things in along my way.
How can I continue to learn
About things, big and small?
How can I understand further
This world, as each step is drawn?
How can I ask further questions
In my mind or verbally?
How can I understand more
About the things that surround me?
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