Fruits Story 
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😃🍑🍉🍊🍍🥝🍓🍐🍏🍏🍇🍎
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If there is a competition among vegetables, grains and fruits, which of them are most yummy and delicious natural food, I would certainly vote for fruits and so will be the case with most of us 
Note: I am hard core vegetarian; hence I have excluded non vegetarian food items from this competition.
As we all know that fruits are packed with essential vitamins, there are obvious health benefits of eating fruits. My love for fruits started because of my paternal Grandpa. A rickshaw-wala used to come twice a week to take him around the town. And he would buy seasonal fruits for us every week.
My mother also played important role in this regard as she planted fruits trees around the house like Guava, Papaya, Custard Apple etc. No wonder, it was my secret wish in teenage to own a fruit farm!
Most of us know that Maharashtra is bestowed with various fruits regions; Mangoes from Konkan, Oranges from Nagpur, Grapes from Nasik, and Bananas from Jalgaon etc. So, quality fruits are always available throughout year. I am stressing on the word ‘seasonal’ because fruits are healthy when consumed in prescribed season.
Among the fruits, I love Mangoes the most. 
My maternal Grandpa used to buy Mangoes for us when we would visit him during summer seasons. When all the adults were sleeping in the afternoon, we could eat extra mangoes kept for ripening from the heap of straws.
My maternal Grandpa used to buy Mangoes for us when we would visit him during summer seasons. When all the adults were sleeping in the afternoon, we could eat extra mangoes kept for ripening from the heap of straws. My daughter eats mangoes, just like me...not able to resist till the last mango in the box is finished! 
I am fortunate to taste foreign fruits as well. In Singapore, we would cherish Longan, Star fruits, Dragon fruits, Kiwis. Durian is a favorite fruit in Singapore which has a peculiar smell. There is a ban on eating it while using public transport. In Belgium, every week we buy different berries like blue berry, raspberry and of course strawberries. Other fruits like Plum, Avocados, Pamplemousse are also on the list.
In Belgium, schools have allotted fruit time every day. My daughter eats her fruit in the school at 10 am in the morning, two hours after breakfast. On every Wednesday, Government gives grants to schools for distributing fruits to students. So is the case with my husband who gets fruit in the office once a week. I wish every school and office in the world has such fruit time!
Prices of fruits are on the rise, so common households cannot afford the fruits. It will be good, if seed balls are prepared from the seeds of fruits and thrown in vacant places. Of course, fruit trees can be planted wherever land is available.
By the way... please don’t get scared that this would spread Nipah everywhere...
At the end, I owe so much to my Grandpas for lovely fruit friendly childhood!!!
When I look at the custard-apple tree in front of my home at Karanja, I remember my paternal Grandpa who has planted the tree...
When I look at mangoes every start of the summer season, I remember my maternal grandpa who would love Mangoes just like me!
🙏🙏🙏
