The curious case of APPLE

Immobilized by the gravity of inquisitiveness, I stretched my imagination to check if there was any other ‘fruit’ which can come close to an ‘apple’ in terms of having such a kaleidoscopic presence in history and discovered my curiosity bouncing back with not much to drive home. This prompted me to take a stab at some portion of existing gamut of knowledge to demystify (is it?) the case of Apple. A for Apple Guess, 9 out of 10 kids all over the globe learn the first letter of English alphabet with an almost obvious reference to the fruit. And I am sure no hell will break loose if kids start learning ‘A’ for aeroplane or ant or something else. Why does it have to be an apple to start with? All said and done, apple is so easy to pronounce and equally easy or even easier to remember no matter how lackadaisical we may be inclined to be. As I see it, life always offers many choices and blessed are those who cherry-pick the simplest one. Something as simple as an apple cannot be left to hindsight which is always a rear-view. Adam & Eve and the forbidden apple Reckon, any story on apple would have this inevitable reference to the origin of (all the sins of) human race on the planet. Though the forbidden fruit in many of the books is not identified, popular Christian tradition has held that it was an apple that Eve coaxed Adam to share with her. As a result, in the story of Adam and Eve, the apple became a symbol for knowledge, immortality, temptation, the fall of man into sin, and sin itself. Amidst all the human drama the poor apple had to swallow all the blame for the rest part of history. Some eye-brows would rise to know was it all that necessary to attribute this to an apple? What if Adam and Eve chose otherwise? However, the case in point here is simple yet huge. Anything that is apparently forbidden gets the first stab (or let’s call it biting). I cannot say if that happens because of this apple saga. Look at the typical human nature. You ask someone not to do a certain thing and its anyone’s guess that he/she would either take a vow to do only that and then turn to something else or allow it to play on the back of his/her mind as if ‘if’ and ‘but’ are the only two words existing on the earth. And then, almost every-time the buck stops at the third one which has to own up take the responsibility for you and I. Newton and the apple falling from the tree I don’t really think anyone else has popularized ‘apple’ more than how Newton seems to have done. If he chose to change his date of birth, the royalty money from Apple Inc. would probably make him a banker’s darling. I sometimes wonder why Newton had to sit under an apple tree. Did not he ever notice any other thing falling onto the ground? There is nothing left to be desired, but may be his idle mind or the good fortune of the apple which was destined to fall that day. More often than not, we so conveniently ignore such obvious things in life unless one fine day we wake up to embrace reality and then turn ourselves into a Newton. Not for a moment I intend to say that life throws surprises at us at the slightest of opportunity. But then, senses and sensibilities are far bigger virtues only if we carry them on our sleeves wherever we go. An apple a day keeps a doctor away The phrase is probably a close second when the question is again about popularizing the ‘apple’. The proverbial apple here needed the Godly breed of doctors to stamp its presence in the DNA of all the goodness on the earth. Apples have a good claim to promote health as they contain Vitamin C, which aid the immune system and phenols, which reduce cholesterol. They also reduce tooth decay by cleaning one's teeth and killing off bacteria. It has also been suggested by Cornell University researchers that the quercetin found in apples protects brain cells against neuro-degenerative disorders like Alzheimer's disease. (http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/an-apple-a-day.html). However someone also tells me that apples may be good for us but it wasn't their precise medicinal properties that were being exalted when this phrase was coined. Guess what- we always need a doctor to tell us to stop smoking, else as if we don’t realise the ill effects smoking, otherwise. I grew up seeing people literally live on fags . Many of them would have never even gone to consult a doctor for they seemingly led a healthy life albeit without getting themselves medically examined. But imagine if they run into some (God forbid) terrible health ailment and see a doctor, the 1st thing probably the doctor would advise is to drop the stick. And then, it would be anyone’s guess what these guys would resort to. At times, we humans knowing fully well that what we are doing is not ok, end up doing only that for reasons may be unknown to even ourselves. We actually feel at times that its infra-dig for us to learn from mistakes no matter whose. And being knocked on the head to accept that from the significant others is like – common, give me a break- do I even know you? In any case, it is my life!!! Apple, the i-factor I am sure it would be hard for the turn-of-the-millennium-generation folks to imagine a world without Apple. Such is the impact of ‘apple’ in the world of computation and digital life-style. RIP, Steve Jobs! What the team offered to the world is something really out of the world. Incidentally, it was an apple. Started with the name ‘Apple Computers’, it did away with the word ‘computer’ to venture into the consumer electronics market in addition to its traditional focus on personal computers. Little over three decades and its insanely amazing to see i-pod, i-phone and i-pad almost replacing roti, kapdaa aur makaan as the basic needs! Need I say any further? The ‘i’ factor has certainly revolutionized the term further. Little the founders knew in 1976 how they would be redefining digital behaviour. It all started with Mac OS. With a paltry market share of less than 2% it gave sleepless nights to the giant leader- Microsoft. The case in point inspires many by emphasizing that size does not matter. The larger than life image of ‘apple’ draws me to have a closer look at life out there. The basic needs of human life seem to have taken a real backseat allowing those with aspiration-values to call the shots, don’t they? Innovation at its innocent best I was narrating this passing thought of putting down something on apple and make it a real curious case. Then, my six-yrs old daughter twisted my thoughts and gave me a blank look. Out of sheer inquisitiveness, i turned to her and waited to hear. Blended with innocence she demystified it further, saying how is this? I asked what? Pat came the 24 carats of fun- How about- A for apple, B for bada- apple, C for chhota apple, D for dusra apple..........? I almost fainted!