THE YUM YUM TREE OF DOW MEDICAL COLLEGE. Yum Yum Tree, also called box fruit tree or heart tree is found mainly in the Southwestern Pacific region. One such tree existed in the campus of Dow Medical College Karachi. It was a beautiful tree, lush green the year round and gave shady to medical students waiting for their next class or for their ride, or waiting for their admired member of the opposite gender to pass by… The tree survived more than 60 years and saw the young Pakistan, the change of demographics of the College to more Muslim as immigrants arrived from India, the rise of student political movements with creation of right and left parties fighting to lead the Students’ Union, followed by breakup of Pakistan and then creation of regional politics with greater religious polarization, the Martial Laws, followed by democracy and Martial Law again and so on…till politics was banned from Universities. It also saw a lot of love stories and romantic interludes between medical students. It witnessed all these silently and held these secrets in it’s solid trunk. On fateful day February 19, 2019 it was found dead by the shocked students. The cause was not immediately apparent and no foul play was suspected. Autopsy did not reveal any termite or other disease. The guess was it died a natural death, no longer able to witness the mess that it was now witnessing. It is greatly missed by the students as seen from the photo, it’s trunk stays and homage is paid to it by the next generations of students; Alumni returning from abroad stand by it and remember their times spent in the School. Dr. Syed Khalid Anwer wrote a poem inspired by the 1963 movie UNDER THE YUM YUM TREE with Jack Lemmon and Carol Lynley. It has been published on our my website TheDowDays.com (AHK July 28 2022)
UNDER THE YUM YUM TREEDr.
Syed Khalid Anwer
Under the Yum Yum tree
Who loves to stand with me
And welcome the buses in
And wave the points goIt is like Good Morning Dow!Every face tells a thousand stories
Bright gleaming faces of new entrants
An eclectic mixture of naiveté,
excitement, adventureThen there are old hands
Well settled into the rhythms,
intricacies, idiosyncracies
Of life at DowFor some the day brings
the opportunity to resolve issues
Tie loose ends, of things, said, unsaidQuick hand shakes and few hugs
There is a swift dispersal
Students heading towards Moeen and Arag
And some heading to the wardsAfternoon time is relaxing time
The platform is heaving
Many gathered under
the cool shade of Yam treeEvents of the day recounted
Jokes being told
Legs being pulled
As the events unfoldSighs of unrequited love
Dreams of romances to unfoldTrees are uniquely wonderful
Witnesses of the present
Caretakers of the past
Silently, discreetly, insidiously,
recording, absorbing,
the pictures, sounds
And events manifoldLike their rings,
the precious memories ,
are buried deepRemember the tree huggers!And if we were to gently shake the trunk,
the leaves would shake
It is like Juke box
Reflecting, replaying,
revealing the patterns,
pictures, events of the pastOf the generations gone!Each generation is its own
Though witnessing events
through their generational eyesThe anxieties, the joys
The successes, the failures
The wishes, the desires
The love, the romancesAre all the sameUnder the Yum Yum Tree!Khalid AnwerView insights1.6K post reach
Zia Mansoor wrote on Facebook Comments: July 28 2022
RIP: Generations of young Dowites sat under the welcoming shade of the yum yum tree. Ever welcoming presence of the twin trees in foreground of the majestic Yellowstone Anatomy building greeted everyone as one entered the gates of Dow. Like every other thing in life we took it for granted and passed by it thousands of times without appreciating its presence or shade it’s loving canopy gave to the young and old, students, teachers, employees and passer byes every day. It was always there in sweltering summers, winters, rains or storms offering its shade to everyone. It witnessed the history of the institution and saw young teenagers grow up and grow old under its shade. It witnessed the institute and its students grow, transform, and progress. Legends like Prof Khawaja Moin,. Adeeb Rizvi, Rahimtoola, Tipu Sahib, Masood Hameed, and many many more Dowites grow up and grew old under its shade. It witnessed many of its children and their children and grandchildren grow and succeed before its time was up. We must fondly remember it like all the other Dowites, students, teachers, friends, who enriched us and molded our young minds and bodies to take our place in this world to serve without discrimination with love and compassion for all.
