I love the Kemboja (plumeria) trees. I think they are beautiful with their branches protruding out at gravity-defying angles. I mean, no kemboja trees grow vertically - that would be boring, wouldn’t it?
I have two in my miniscule garden. When they were smaller, if you were to use your ‘imagination’, you would find them in shape of the Arabic word ‘Allah’ albeit in a slanting form. No, I am not implying anything – perhaps you can imagine just about anything with its angled branches.
When I was a kid – and that I have to admit it was a long, long time ago, Kemboja trees conjured an image of the Malay graveyard. It is almost always be associated with the graveyards. I had always wondered why.
Apparently Kemboja trees don’t require too much watering and they are easy to grow. Their blooms are not only beautiful to the eyes – depending on the species, they may have red, white, or yellow blooms, they are also scented. Now these are good reasons to have the Kembojas in the graveyards, and I guess it would give you the kind of eerie feeling one would feel especially on a Friday night walking home from your mengaji and you need to pass by a graveyard - complete with that sweet smelling fragrant, filling up the night's cool air, one that is associated with certain creature made famous by those black-and-white Malay movies of the fifties or to those living more in the present, perhaps Maya Karin, in her famous role in Pontianak Harum Sundal Malam.
In the 16th century a certain Italian noble family invented the plumeria-scented perfume. I wonder if our best Asian actress would use such perfume, off the Pontianak set that is. Interestingly too, in Australia, Kemboja is called Dead Man’s Fingers due to its thin, leafless, finger-like branches.
Call it what you may, I am keeping my Kemboja trees. It gives character to my garden. But I think I will refrain myself from sitting outside on a certain night of the week and just enjoy things indoor on that particular night!
Sunday January 28, 2007 - 12:08pm (MYT)
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