Our last summer vacation destination was in picturesque areas of Narkanda  in Himachal Pradesh. The entire belt along the road from Naldhera to Narkanda is a travelers and photographer’s delight. While driving one cannot miss out enjoying  beautiful and scenic glimpses of apple and cherry orchards.

We too got an opportunity to take a walk through one such cherry orchard. As luck would have it, we could see cherries blooming from trees at the most favorable time of the year i.e.  the spring season. The orchard owner very proudly narrated to us as to how he went about developing his orchard. He went on to tell us some anecdotes about how cherries  provide the locals with symbolic hope for new beginnings and good luck throughout the year.

While we were enjoying a hot cup of tea with the owner, he also mentioned to me his ancestral military connections. This not only added warmth to our conversation but also reminded me of my having read that in the wartime era, cherry meant diplomatic peace, love, and harmony.

My daughter, being a psychologist added her bit by telling us, just as cherry, plum, peach and damson blossoms all possess their own unique qualities, each person is unique. We cannot become someone else. The important thing is that we live true to ourselves and cause the great flower of our lives to blossom.”

Friends as we walked along the memory lane,  we felt that our life had been simple but overwhelmingly beautiful. Looking forward, I think there is so much that  life has to offer to us, we just need to have a correct perspective and the right mindset to make the best of it.

Enjoy reading and have a great weekend with some cherry picking