Einhorn

Like every other story teller, I just fail to ignore the call of untold stories, so I narrate...

Sunday, July 12, 2009

Persimmon (from July 3rd)



Today I just ate the saddest persimmon of my life and that, in the beginning of July!* Now I am just stoned mourning for its 4 dried leaves and a little bit of orange flesh left on it, which I can not throw away. As I caress its dried leaves among my fingers for the hundredth time, lick the leftover orange stain, smell it and examine how smooth and straight its four corners are, I feel just mesmerized by the realization that I do hold persimmon leaves in my hand.

There might hardly exist any fruit so tightly bond to my childhood and Tehran or any tree I have so watched in all its four seasons such as persimmon. I know a lot of Tehranis who have never seen persimmon blossoms in their lives, for they never stared among its green leaves in May - when persimmon trees bloom - in order to discover the tiny but strong four petal white blossoms among these leaves. I also know a lot of Tehranis who know nothing of the magic of this tree in fall, when its ripe fruits on the branches tempt every passanger and its leaves turn color with the most spectacular shapes and patterns to the most wonderous colors of autumn, until they finally fall. Now I sit here with dried leaves of this half ripe Israeli persimmon in my hand and think of my childhood, the taste of persimmon in November and of persimmon trees. I know of no other town in the world, where the yard of every houshold is decorated with a persimmon tree, even should it be - as of the case of my childhood house - the only tree.

The dried persimmon leaves take me 6000 km away, to Tehran; a Tehran of other colors and other atmosphere these days, a Tehran sinking in blood and burning up in life burning flames. My heart beats in the streets of this city these days, more than ever. I miss the allies, the yards and the persimmons of this city; I miss people who buy persimmons, who plant persimmon trees and who do not take the time to watch their trees carefully; people who - like the leaves of a persimmon tree in fall - are being blown off their branches one after another these days and indeed, how wonderously colorful and graceful do each of them fall to the ground!

I wish spring would come upon this persimmon tree, Tehran, soon und so it should bloom again with the tiny beautiful blossoms.



(p.s. *Persimmon is an autumn fruit.)

2 Comments:

Blogger robert said...

Good morning,
the closest I ever got to Iran was the friendship with a girl living in Shiraz, and friends at the University of Hamburg, where I studied.Like the country very much and hope that it will return to the culture and life it long ago had.

2:08 AM  
Blogger Einhornin said...

So I suppose you already know more about Iran than many others.
Although I come from Tehran, Shiraz is one of my two favorite cities in Iran, I must say, it always has a great historical background filled with the scent of flowers, the taste of wine and most delicate poetry.

I wonder if we ever had the life and the culture we wish upon these days, for there has always been something up in Iran but thank you nevertheless. We are trying to achieve something of our own which is most times supposed to be the hardest.

Maybe we could learn a thing or two from the Greek. ;)

1:22 PM  

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