“A Badam (Almond) tree in the plains is quite a novelty”, my father told me; and for a ten year old it became a matter of pride and adoration. The young tree spread its roots and announced its approval of living conditions in our Lucknow garden with a flourish of dewy foliage. Glossy parrot-green leaves draped the tree, ignoring the diktat of the summer sun. It grew like the magical beanstalk in the Grimm’s Fairy Tale ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’.