A Harvest Gift From Rural India

Last summer when we were living in rural India, one day we decided to go for a walk, and the walk turned into an unexpected pleasant moment.

When we got to the field after crossing the train tracks, we saw some women, men and children working in the field. It seemed they were harvesting. One of the women motioned me to come and offered me some of their harvest.They were some kind of beans in a skinny green pod. She gave me a bunch and I put them in my small bag which was already pretty full. It was a very kind gesture. I just love when language is not a barrier.

Josh and I continued our walk and I wished I had taken some photos of the moment.

About half an hour later we headed back the same way and found the women still there. The train happened to be passing by, so we had to stop anyway. Josh and I took some photos (with our crappy phone cameras) and they offered me even more of these beans from their harvest which I carried back in my hands because I had no more space in my bag.

The woman opened one of the pods and took out the beans and fed them to me. They were small bright green beans which didn’t taste bad at all.

It is fun eating things from the “wild”, from their natural habitat.

Later after some googling, I came to the conclusion that they were mung beans, common in India. They are often used to make dal.

I’ve never seen or tasted a fresh bean! Have you?