Page 105 - NEW_English_Spring 7

green garden path. After pacing up and down for five minutes, I got back to the tree.

‘You think I am mad, don’t you?’ said grandpa.
I said, ‘You are not mad, you are only very difficult to deal with!’

‘Good night Sathya, go and sleep well,’ called grandpa. I went in and fell into bed. Tiger
flopped by my side. The town clock struck ten. As I drifted off to sleep, I could hear
grandpa munching biscuits and drinking the coffee. He passed the night peacefully on

the tree.

The next morning, I got up early. Ramya and Priya, my cousins, brought us a flask of
steaming, hot coffee. They knew that grandpa was very fond of it. Grandpa and I shared
the coffee with great delight.

The morning newspaper was dropped at our doorstep. I looked at the paper eagerly.
There was a flash news in a box, ‘A brave fight for the trees. Silent protest of a senior
citizen against the felling of trees.’

The column also explained how the beauty of the town would be affected by the senseless
cutting of trees. A photo of the lofty tree with the board was printed along with the news.

With great joy, I read out the news to grandpa. It was all the good work of the young
reporter who had called on us the day before.

The news seemed to have reached Mr Mohan. He was the co-ordinator of the ‘Save the
Trees’ campaign. It was a popular organisation in the town. He arrived on his scooter
and greeted grandpa. ‘We will stand by you in your fight, Sir. We have to preserve
nature’s wealth. Bravo!’ He said he would be coming again with his men.

Meanwhile, breakfast arrived. We had just begun to eat when my grandpa’s friend, Mr
Anand arrived. He had heard about grandpa living in a tree. He was not surprised but he
was worried.

‘Are you enjoying your picnic?’ he asked. As he spoke he stepped back. Before I could
warn him, he had tripped over the ladder. When he stood up, he grinned. ‘I did not see

the ladder hiding in the grass,’ he said.
Grandpa remarked with a smile, ‘You were looking up when you should have been

looking down, Anand.’
He nodded. Then he smiled again. I turned to go indoors. He stopped me. ‘How can I
help with the problem?’ he asked.

‘I am not coming down until the Council promises to leave the trees alone. So, don’t

waste your time making plans for me,’ grandpa said.
Anand nodded. He agreed with every word that grandpa said. They chatted for a while,
with him gazing up and grandpa looking down. Then he called out to me, ‘I think you

are doing a wonderful job looking after your grandfather.’

105