• Think about who you will send the money to, and how much. You might want to send money for a magazine subscription, or to a relative or a friend.
• Or you may fill out the form with yourself as sender and your partner as receiver. Use a part of your pocket money, and submit the form at the nearest post office to see how it’s done. See how your partner enjoys getting money by post!
• Notice that the form has three parts — the Money Order form, the part for official use and the Acknowledgement. What would you write in the ‘Space for Communication’?

Now complete the following statements.

(i) In addition to the sender, the form has to be signed by the PAYEE

(ii)  The ‘Acknowledgement’ section of the form is sent back by the post office to the sender after the PAYEE signs it.

(iii)  The ‘Space for Communication’ section is used for WRITING A NOTE TO THE PAYEE

(iv)  The form has six sections. The sender needs to fill out FOUR sections and the receiver TWO

Oral Comprehension Check

Q 1: What did Lencho hope for?

Ans 1: Lencho, a hardworking farmer, eagerly wished for rain to nourish his ripening crops. He prayed for showers to ensure a good harvest, as a lack of rain would ruin the crop and result in a significant loss.

Q 2: Why did Lencho say the raindrops were like ‘new coins?

Ans 2: Lencho had grown corn crops that were almost ready for harvest. However, they still needed some rain to ensure a good yield. Since his income depended on the rain, he compared the raindrops to ‘new coins.’ He imagined the larger drops as ten-cent coins and the smaller ones as five-cent coins, symbolizing the wealth they would bring through a successful harvest.

Q 3: How did the rain change? What happened to Lencho’s fields?

Ans 3: The season began with favorable rains, and Lencho was hopeful for a great harvest. However, the weather quickly took a turn for the worse as strong winds and hailstorms arrived. Unfortunately, these harsh conditions completely ruined his crops.

Q 4: What were Lencho’s feelings when the hail stopped?

Ans 4: Lencho was heartbroken as he watched his ripe crops get destroyed by the hailstorm. Seeing his hard work go to waste filled him with deep sorrow. He knew that without the harvest, his family would struggle to get enough food and money to survive. The future seemed uncertain and full of hardships, leaving him feeling hopeless and worried.

Class 10 (English – First flight) Chapter 1 A Letter to God

Updated Solution 2024-2025

Oral Comprehension Check

Q 1: Who or what did Lencho have faith in? What did he do?

Ans 1: Despite facing hardships, Lencho had unwavering faith in God. He believed that God, watching over him from above, would understand his suffering and provide relief. Trusting in divine help, Lencho wrote a letter to God, requesting a hundred pesos to replant his crops, as his previous harvest was ruined by a hailstorm.

Q 2: Who reads the letter?

Ans 2: The postmaster read the letter because the address on it was unrealistic.

Q 3: What did the postmaster do then?

Ans 3: When the postmaster first saw the letter’s address, he laughed at the sender’s innocence. However, he soon realized that the letter might hold deeper meaning. Curious, he decided to read it. After understanding the writer’s emotions, he was deeply moved and wanted to help. To do so, he contributed a part of his salary and also gathered money from his colleagues, friends, and acquaintances. He then sent the collected amount to the letter’s sender, Lencho.

Oral Comprehension Check

Q 1: Was Lencho surprised to find a letter for him with money in it?

Ans 1: No, Lencho was not surprised. He had deep faith in God and firmly believed that God would help him in his time of need. So, when he received the letter with money, he saw it as an answer to his prayers.

Q 2: What made him angry?

Ans 2: After receiving the letter, he began counting the money that he believed was sent by God. However, he discovered that he had received only seventy pesos instead of the hundred pesos he had requested. This made him very upset. Still, he had strong faith in God and was certain that God wouldn’t disappoint him. So, he assumed that the post office employees had taken part of his money.

Thinking about the text

Q 1: Who does Lencho have complete faith in? Which sentences in the story tell you this?

Ans 1: Lencho had unwavering faith in God. He firmly believed that God would help him in his time of need and provide a solution to his problems. The following lines from the story highlight his strong trust in God:

a). The only hope for everyone living in that isolated house in the valley was divine help.
b). Throughout the night, Lencho held onto one thought—his hope in God, who, as he had been taught, sees everything, even the deepest thoughts of                     one’s heart.
c). In his letter, he wrote, “God, if you don’t help me, my family and I will go hungry this year.”
d). Lencho was convinced that God neither made mistakes nor denied him what he had asked for.
e). With complete faith, he wrote “To God” on the envelope, placed his letter inside, and, despite his worries, went to town.
f). His letter read: “God, out of the money I requested, I received only seventy pesos. Please send the rest, as I need it urgently.”

Q 2: Why does the postmaster send money to Lencho? Why does he sign the letter ‘God’?

Ans 2: People have always placed their trust in God, believing that He will help them in times of need. However, Lencho’s faith was truly exceptional. He wrote a letter to God, asking for financial help as if he were requesting assistance from a close friend. Moved by Lencho’s unwavering belief, the postmaster wanted to ensure that his faith remained strong. To do so, he collected seventy pesos and sent them to Lencho, signing the letter as ‘God.

Q 3: Did Lencho try to find out who had sent the money to him? Why/Why not?

Ans 3: No, Lencho did not try to find out who had sent the money. He had unwavering faith in God and was completely convinced that the money came from Him. Lencho was so sure about it that he didn’t question its source. Instead, when he received less than the hundred pesos he had asked for, he went to the post office, believing that God wouldn’t grant his wish only partially.

Q 4: Who does Lencho think has taken the rest of the money? What is the irony in the situation? (Remember that the irony of a situation is an unexpected aspect of it. An ironic situation is strange or amusing because it is the opposite of what is expected.)

Ans 4: Lencho believes that the post office employees took a portion of the money that he had received from God, as he got thirty pesos less than he had requested. The irony in the situation is that the money was not actually sent by God but by the postmaster and his colleagues, the very people Lencho suspected of stealing from him.

Q 5: Are there people like Lencho in the real world? What kind of a person would you say he is? You may select appropriate words from the box to answer the question.

Greedy, Naive, Stupid, Ungrateful, Selfish, Comical, Unquestioning. 

Ans 5: Throughout history, humans have often turned to a higher power for support in difficult times. However, Lencho’s faith was truly extraordinary. It is rare to find someone today who would write a letter to God, expecting a direct response in the form of money. His unwavering belief in divine intervention makes him appear both naive and unquestioning in his reasoning.

Q 6: There are two kinds of conflict in the story: between humans and nature, and between humans themselves. How are these conflicts illustrated?

Ans 6: The conflict between humans and nature is demonstrated through Lencho’s struggle. His crops were thriving and almost ready for harvest when a sudden hailstorm destroyed everything. This highlights nature’s overwhelming power, leaving Lencho helpless. With no way to recover his losses, he turned to his faith, writing a letter to God and asking for financial assistance.

The conflict between humans is shown through the misunderstanding between Lencho and the postmaster. Moved by Lencho’s faith, the postmaster collected seventy pesos to help him, sending the money in God’s name. However, instead of being grateful, Lencho suspected the postal workers of stealing part of the money. This reflects the deep-seated distrust people often have toward each other.

THINKING ABOUT LANGUAGE

Q I: Look at the following sentence from the story.

Suddenly a strong wind began to blow and along with the rain very large hailstones began to fall. ‘Hailstones’ are small balls of ice that fall like rain. A storm in which hailstones fall is a ‘hailstorm’. You know that a storm is bad weather with strong winds, rain, thunder and lightning.

There are different names in different parts of the world for storms, depending on their nature. Can you match the names in the box with their descriptions below, and fill in the blanks? You may use a dictionary to help you.

gale, whirlwind, cyclone, hurricane, tornado, typhoon

1. A violent tropical storm in which strong winds move in a circle: _ _ c _ _ _ 

Ans 1: Cyclone

2. An extremely strong wind: _a_ _

Ans 2: Gale

3. A violent tropical storm with very strong winds: _ _ p_ _ _ _

Ans 3: Typhoon

4. A violent storm whose center is a cloud in the shape of a funnel: _ _ _n_ _ _

Ans 4: Tornado

5. A violent storm with very strong winds, especially in the western Atlantic Ocean: _ _r_ _ _ _ _ _

Ans 5: Hurricane

6. A very strong wind that moves very fast in a spinning movement and causes a lot of damage:

_ _ _ _l_ _ _ _.

Ans 6: Whirlwind

 Q II. Notice how the word ‘hope’ is used in these sentences from the story: 

(a) I hope it (the hailstorm) passes quickly. 

(b) There was a single hope: help from God. 

In the first example, ‘hope’ is a verb which means you wish for something to happen. In the second example it is a noun meaning a chance for something to happen.

Match the sentences in Column A with the meanings of ‘hope’ in Column B.

Answer II:

 III. Relative Clauses Look at these sentences 

(a) All morning Lencho — who knew his fields intimately — looked at the sky. 

(b) The woman, who was preparing supper, replied, “Yes, God willing.’’ 

The italicised parts of the sentences give us more information about Lencho and the woman. We call them relative clauses. Notice that they begin with a relative pronoun who. Other common relative pronouns are whom, whose, and which. 

The relative clauses in (a) and (b) above are called non-defining, because we already know the identity of the person they describe. Lencho is a particular person, and there is a particular woman he speaks to. We don’t need the information in the relative clause to pick these people out from a larger set. 

A non-defining relative clause usually has a comma in front of it and a comma after it (some writers use a dash (—) instead, as in the story). If the relative clause comes at the end, we just put a full stop.

Join the sentences given below using who, whom, whose, which as suggested.

1. I often go to Mumbai. Mumbai is the commercial capital of India. (which)

Ans 1: I often visit Mumbai, which is the commercial capital of India.

2. My mother is going to host a TV show on cooking. She cooks very well. (who)

Ans 2: My mother, who cooks very well, is going to host a TV show on cooking.

3. These sportspersons are going to meet the President. Their performance has been excellent. (whose)

Ans 3: These sportspersons, whose performance has been excellent, are going to meet the President.

4. Lencho prayed to God. His eyes see into our minds. (whose)

Ans 4: Lencho prayed to God, whose eyes see into our minds.

5. This man cheated me. I trusted him. (whom)

Ans 5: This man, whom I trusted, cheated me.

Q IV: Using Negatives for Emphasis We know that sentences with words such as no, not or nothing show the absence of something, or contradict something. For example: 

(a) This year we will have no corn. (Corn will be absent) 

(b) The hail has left nothing. (Absence of a crop)

(c) These aren’t raindrops falling from the sky, they are new coins. (Contradicts the common idea of what the drops of water falling from the sky are). 

But sometimes negative words are used just to emphasise an idea. Look at these sentences from the story: 

(d) Lencho…had done nothing else but see the sky towards the northeast. (He had done only this) 

(e) The man went out for no other reason than to have the pleasure of feeling the rain on his body. (He had only this reason) 

(f) Lencho showed not the slightest surprise on seeing the money. (He showed no surprise at all) 

Now look back at example (c). Notice that the contradiction in fact serves to emphasise the value or usefulness of the rain to the farmer.

Find sentences in the story with negative words, which express the following ideas emphatically.

1. The trees lost all their leaves.

Ans 1: Not a single leaf was left on the trees.

2. The letter was addressed to God himself.

Ans 2: The letter was addressed to no one but God himself.

3. The postman saw this address for the first time in his career.

Ans 3: Never before in his career had the postman seen such an address.

Q V:  Metaphors The word metaphor comes from a Greek word meaning ‘transfer’. Metaphors compare two things or ideas: a quality or feature of one thing is transferred to another thing. Some common metaphors are 

• the leg of the table: The leg supports our body. So, the object that supports a table is described as a leg. 
• the heart of the city: The heart is an important organ in the center of our body. So, this word is used to describe the central area of a city. In pairs, find metaphors from the story to complete the table below. Try to say what qualities are being compared. One has been done for you.

 Ans V: The metaphors are:

SPEAKING

Q 1: Have you ever been in great difficulty, and felt that only a miracle could help you? How was your problem solved? Speak about this in class with your teacher.

Ans 1: Life often puts us in tough situations where we feel only a miracle can save us. One such incident happened during a graded college project. We were asked to form groups and take up a volunteer activity. Since my friends and I started late, we planned a distribution event just a week before the deadline. Unfortunately, we didn’t check the weather forecast before finalizing the plan.

On the day of the event, the sky was covered with dark clouds, and it looked like it could rain at any moment. We were anxious but decided to go ahead, hoping the rain would hold off. As we started distributing, we kept praying that the weather would stay clear. Miraculously, it did not rain for the two hours we needed to complete our work. The moment we reached home, heavy rain started pouring down, almost as if it had been waiting for us to finish.

This experience strengthened my belief that sometimes, things work out in unexpected ways, just when we need them the most.

LISTENING

Q 1: Listen to the letter (given under ‘In This Lesson’) read out by your teacher/on the audio tape. As you listen fill in the table given below.

 Ans: The filled table is shown below:

WRITING

Q 1: Lencho suffered first due to drought and then by floods. Our country is also facing such situations in the recent years. There is flood and there is drought. There is a need to save water through water harvesting. Design a poster or prepare a documentary (PPT) for your area on how to save water during summer and when it is available in excess.

Ans 1:  The poster is given below: