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A Letter To God
A Letter To God
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their meanings in the end of ‘chapter explanation’ part.
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6. But in the hearts of all who lived in that Even after everything had gone southwards
solitary house in the middle of the (gone wrong), the family still had hope in their
valley, there was a single hope: help hearts of hearts. They had faith in the
from God. "Don't be so upset, even almighty even after nothing was left. They gave
though this seems like a total loss. each other support and recalled a saying
Remember, no one dies of which assures that no one ever dies of
hunger.""That's what they say: no one starvation.
dies of hunger. "
7. All through the night, Lencho thought Lencho spent his entire night thinking of the
only of his one hope: the help of God, only option left and that was to seek the help
whose eyes, as he had been instructed, of God, who, he had been informed, has its
see everything, even what is deep in eyes and ears everywhere. He thought of
one's conscience. Lencho was an ox of a writing a letter to God conveying his
man, working like an animal in the grievances. Despite spending all these years
fields, but still he knew how to write. working at the farm, he still knew how to
The following Sunday, at daybreak, he write. He started writing on the Sunday
began to write a letter which he himself morning and thought of mailing it himself by
would carry to town and place in the going to the town.
mail. It was nothing less than a letter to
God.
8. "God, he wrote, "if you don't help me, my In his letter to god, he communicated his
family and I will go hungry this year. I poverty-stricken situation and mentioned that
need a hundred pesos in order to sow he needed 100 pesos to regenerate the crops
my field again and to live until the crop along with surviving until they are ready to
comes, because the hailstorm...." He harvest. On the envelope, He wrote, "To God,
wrote 'To God' on the envelope, put the Then, at the post office, placed stamp on the
letter inside and, still troubled, went to letter and dropped it in the mailbox.
town. At the post office, he placed a
stamp on the letter and dropped it into
the mailbox.
9. One of the employees, who was a A postman, who was also an employee of the
postman and also helped at the post post office, noticed Lencho's letter and showed
office, went to his boss laughing heartily it to the postmaster. They both felt amused,
and showed him the letter to God. Never but the postmaster, fat and friendly,
in his career as a postman had he immediately developed a sense of seriousness.
known that address. The postmaster - a He was astounded at the amount of faith
fat, amiable fellow - also broke out Lencho has in God and wished he had the
laughing, but almost immediately he same.
turned serious and, tapping the letter on
his desk, commented, "What faith! I wish
I had the faith of the man who wrote this
letter. Starting up a correspondence with
God!"
10. So, in order not to shake the writer's With good intentions, the postmaster read the
faith in God, the postmaster came up letter and thought of replying to it so as to
with an idea: answer the letter. But keep the writer's belief intact. But the writer
when he opened it, it was evident that to expected the reply in a different way that could
answer it he needed something more not be fulfilled with pen, paper and morals.
than goodwill, ink and paper. But he The farmer had demanded for 100 pesos. The
stuck to his resolution: he asked for postmaster along with his colleagues and a
money from his employees, he himself few friends, who were more than willing to
gave part of his salary, and several donate for a good cause, collected a pool of
friends of his were obliged to give money to help Lencho.
something'for an act of charity'.
11. It was impossible for him to gather Despite his best efforts, he was only able to
together the hundred pesos, so he was collect an amount not more than half of what
able to send the farmer only a little more was required. He then addressed it to Lencho
than half. He put the money in an along with a letter which was undersigned by
envelope addressed to Lencho and with God.
it a letter containing only a single word
as a signature: God
12. The following Sunday Lencho came a bit Next Sunday, Lencho came looking for the
earlier than usual to ask if there was a reply a bit earlier than expected. The postman
letter for him. It was the postman handed him the letter waiting to see him joyful
himself who handed the letter to him and surprised while the postmaster, feeling
while the postmaster, experiencing the satisfied, oversaw it from his office. On the
contentment of a man who has contrary, the farmer got disheartened on
performed a good deed, looked on from seeing that the money was less than what he
his office. Lencho showed not the asked for. His faith is still undeterred and he
slightest surprise on seeing the money; believed that God cannot make such a
such was his confidence but he became mistake.
angry when he counted the money. God
could not have made a mistake, nor
could he have denied Lencho what he
had requested.
13. Immediately, Lencho went up to the On being disappointed, he started looking for
window to ask for paper and ink. On the ink and paper to write to God again. While
public writing-table, he started to write, writing, his eyebrows got curled out of the
with much wrinkling of his brow, caused concentration with which he was drafting a
by the effort he had to make to express new request. On completing, he affixed it with
his ideas. When he finished, he went to a stamp. As soon as he dropped it into the
the window to buy a stamp which he mailbox, the postmaster took it out to read it.
licked and then affixed to the envelope Lencho complained that he had only received
with a blow of his fist. The moment the 70 pesos and he is really in need of the
letter fell into the mailbox the remaining amount. He doubted the integrity
postmaster went to open it. It said: "God: and honesty of the post office employees and
Of the money that I asked for, only suggested that the money should not be sent
seventy pesos reached me. Send me the via post because he doubted that the staff at
rest, since I need it very much. But don't the post office must have stolen the missing
send it to me through the mail because amount
the post office employees are a bunch of
crooks. Lencho."
WORD MEANINGS
Crest: Top of a hill locusts- Insects which fly in big groups and
Dotted: Full Of destroy crops
Downpour: Heavy Rain solitary: Existing alone; lonely.
Intimately: Closely conscience- an inner sense of right and wrong.
Exclaimed- cry out suddenly in surprise, strong ox of a man- hardworking
emotion, or pain. daybreak- The time in the morning when
Regarded- Consider Or Think Of In A Specified daylight first appears
Way Pesos- the basic monetary unit of Mexico,
Draped- Adorn, Cover, Or Wrap (Someone Or several other Latin American countries, and the
Something) Philippines
Hailstones- A Pellet Of Hail Amiable- Friendly And Pleasant
Resemble- Have A Similar Appearance To Or Correspondence- Communication by exchanging
Qualities In Common With (Someone Or letters with someone.
Something); Look Or Seem Like. goodwill- friendly, helpful, or cooperative feelings
Exposing- make (something) visible by or attitude
uncovering it.; reveal resolution- a firm decision to do or not to do
plague- a destructively numerous inflow or something.
multiplication of a harmful animal, infestation obliged- grateful
contentment- Satisfaction
“A Letter to God" is a story about an innocent man who has unshakeable faith in the generosity of
God. But this faith gives rise to an amusing situation where the persons who try to save this man's
faith in God are accused by him of being 'a bunch of crooks'.
Summary
"A Letter to God" is the story of Lencho, a very hardworking and a God-fearing peasant who lives
with his family in an isolated house. When the story opens, we find him waiting for a downpour that
will assure a very rich harvest. Lencho shares his hope with his wife who agrees with her husband,
although not as enthusiastically as him. As the family settles down for dinner, Lencho's prediction
about the rainfall comes true. This welcome rain thrills Lencho, and he runs out of the house like a
child to get the pleasant feel of raindrops on his body. Little does he expect that the raindrops
which promised a shower of prosperity would spell disaster. The constant rain is soon accompanied
by very large hailstones which keep hitting the entire valley for more than an hour, eventually
destroying the crops to the last grain. Lencho helplessly watches his devastated fields with his sons
by his side. He observes that even a swarm of locusts wouldn't have createdas much havoc. The
family sits together lamenting their loss Yet their unflinching faith in God saves them from absolute
frustration and they count upon the Almighty's generosity. Lencho knows that nothing is hidden
from God's eyes, so on the following Sunday, he writes a letter to God asking for a hundred pesos.
He asks for this money so that he can sow his field again and tide over the crisis till the next
harvest. Addressing the letter to God, Lencho personally takes it to the town for posting it. At the
post office he stamps it duly and drops it into the mail box. This unique letter with an unusual
addressee's name causes much amusement in the post office. In the midst of laughter, the
postmaster admits that he is touched by the deep faith of the sender. He decides to send an answer
to Lencho on God's behalf, so that his faith remains steadfast. He opens the letter to find that
Lencho has requested God to send him money. However, he does not shirk from helping Lencho and
contributes a part of his salary to help him. He also raises some more money by seeking donations
from his friends and employees. However, even the best of his efforts can't get him a hundred pesos
and he has to manage this fact of charity' with seventy pesos only. He puts the money in an
envelope, writes a letter with only one word - God', and addresses it to Lencho. Next Sunday,
Lencho returns to the post office to collect God's response to his request. The postmaster hands him
the letter and looks on from his office like a contended man who has performed a good deed. Lencho
opens the 'letter from God' and confidently tak out the enclosed money. However, he gets angry
after counting it and feels that God could not have made a mistake in sending him thirty pesos
short. He could also not have denied Lencho's request. Immediately, he asks for paper and ink and
writes another letter to God. He buys a stamp, affixes it on the envelope and puts it in the mailbox.
The postmaster opens it to find an ironical response from Lencho. In this letter, Lencho had
complained to God that he had received only seventy pesos and God must send the rest at the
earliest. But he instructs God not to send the money through the mail because the employees at the
post office were an untrustworthy 'bunch of crooks'.
NCERT QUESTIONS
1. Why did Lencho say the raindrops were like 'new coins'?
Ans. Lencho compared the raindrops with 'new coins'. He compared the big drops to the ten cent
pieces and the little ones to the five cent pieces. He felt so because these raindrops were round.
shining and precious like coins. Besides, like coins, they were expected to bring him the wealth of a
good harvest of corn.
Ans. The storm that began with a light drizzle, soon turned violent. Strong winds began to blow and
were accompanied by large hailstones. For an hour, the hailstones, that resembled 'new silver
coins', rained on the house, the garden, the hillside, the cornfield and the valley. They covered the
field like a sheet of white salt, Not a leaf remained on the tress and the corn in the field was
completely destroyed. The flowers too had gone from the plants.
Ans. After the storm had passed, Lencho's soul was filled with sadness. He helplessly looked at his
completely destroyed corn- field and exclaimed that even the locusts wouldn't have ruined the crops
to such an extent. He also said that in the absence of the harvest, the entire family would have to
starve that year.
4. Who or what did Lencho have faith in? What did he do?
Ans. Following the total devastation of his corn field by the hailstorm, Lencho was filled with
sorrow. His family was on the brink of starvation. In this critical time, God was his only hope.
Having full faith in Him, he decided to write a letter to God on a Sunday morning and ask for a
hundred pesos to sow his field again and to live until the crop came.
5. What did the postmaster resolve to do after reading Lencho's letter? How did he fulfill it?
Ans. After reading Lencho's letter, the kind-hearted postmaster understood that to answer it he
needed more than goodwill. So, he resolved to keep Lencho's faith intact. To fulfill this resolve he
collected money from his friends and contributed a part of his salary as well to be sent to Lencho on
God's behalf.
1. Why did the postmaster send money to Lencho? Why did he sign the letter as'God?
Ans. One day, one of the post office employees brought a strange letter to the postmaster. This letter
was addressed to God seeking help of a hundred pesos. Initially, amused at the innocence of the
writer of this letter, the postmaster was soon touched by the depth of the man's steadfast faith in
God. He did not want this faith to be shaken at any cost. So, this kind-hearted man took upon
himself the task of assuring Lencho, the writer of the letter, that God existed and helped those who
believed in Him. He then collected seventy pesos by contributing a part of his salary and raising the
rest with the help of his friends and post office employees. He enclosed this money with a letter that
was to be sent as God's response. So, the postmaster simply wrote a single word 'God' in this letter.
He did so because he wanted Lencho to believe that the letter with which the money was enclosed
was written by God himself.
2. Who does Lencho think has taken the rest of the money? What is the irony in the situation?
Ans. Lencho was angry when he found that God had sent him only seventy pesos because he had
firm faith in God and believed that God could neither have made a mistake by sending less money
nor could He have denied him what he had requested. Ironically, his suspicion about the missing
amount fell on the post office employees who had actually taken the trouble to contribute to the
seventy pesos that he received. Had the post office employees not taken this step, the poor farmer
and his family would have had to face starvation that year. It is again ironical that Lencho referred
to these kind-hearted souls as a bunch of crooks in his second letter to God. The irony is further
compounded when Lencho instructs God not to send the remaining money through the mail.
Therefore, Lencho's firm faith in God's generosity remains steadfast, but ironically he doubts the
goodness of human beings.
3. There are two kinds of conflicts in the story - between humans and nature and between
humans themselves. How are these conflicts illustrated?
Ans. The story "A Letter to God" opens with a conflict between humans and nature. This conflict is
illustrated when the hailstorm completely destroys Lencho's crops. The hard working farmer, along
with his sons, toiled in his fields and expectantly waited for a downpour to seal the prospects of a
very good harvest. However, nature, in its vicious mood, came in direct conflict with him at this
time. The helpless Lencho witnessed the ruin of his labour caused by the hostile nature. The second
conflict, which is between the humans, is illustrated when Lencho accuses the post office employees
as dishonest and calls them a bunch of crooks'in his second letter to God. He fails to see their act of
charity and doubts their integrity. This situation shows a conflict between humans which is
outcome of mistrust of one man with another. Nature is more powerful than man, so human beings
accept defeat in case of conflict with a superior power. However, they resent a situation where the
conflict is with another human being who is equally strong.
Ans. Lencho was a simple, God-fearing farmer who was an 'ox of man'. He worked very hard in his
fields and took delight in his work. He was as committed to his family as he was to his fields. He
worked hard to provide for them and rejoiced in fulfilling his responsibilities. His mode of livelihood
depended on the mercy of nature which unfortunately once turned unfavourable. A hail storm
completely devastated his crops. However, he had unshakeable faith in the generosity of God. So, he
wrote a letter to God explaining that the failure of crop would result in the starvation of his family
that year. He asked God to help him by sending a hundred pesos in order to sow his field again and
to live till the crop was ready. He had a child-like confidence in God that prompted him to turn to
Him for help and his unshakeable faith led him to start a correspondence with the Almighty.
2. Did Lencho try to find out who had sent the money to him? Why/ Why not?
Ans. No, Lencho did not try to find out who had sent the money to him because he was confident
that it had been sent to him by God. Lencho was a simple farmer who had firm faith in the power of
God. He believed that God can see everything, even the inner most thoughts of a person. This made
his faith in God strong and complete. Besides, God was his only hope and he did not know who else
to approach in his trying times. Thus, he did not doubt even once that the seventy pesos could have
been sent by anyone else. In addition, perhaps his experience about human help had not been
good. This becomes evident from the fact that even his family talks of hope only from God. Quite
likely, Lencho had distrust for human beings with regard to money matters. That's why when he
writes to God the second time, he tells Him not to send the remaining money through the dishonest
post office employees.
Ans. God's ways are mysterious. He does answer our prayers and responds to our pleadings but his
omniscient power doesn't appear in person to work miracles for us. He fulfills our wishes through
his instruments in sucha spontaneous manner that one wonders whether it is a chance happening
or a shower of His grace. In Lencho's case, God did answer his request albeit indirectly and
partially. The seventy pesos that reached Lencho were an act of charity done by the people who too
believed in God's kindness. The motive of these people was not to let Lencho's faith in God be
shaken. Their volunteering to take upon themselves the responsibility to help Lencho was in fact
their way of answering God's call. They too must have experienced God's generosity and thus they
made an effort to keep alive a simple man's faith.
Ans. Lencho had been waiting for the rain since morning. He expected 'a downpour or a shower' in
order to have a good harvest. So when it began to rain, Lencho was very happy. He felt that the
raindrops resembled 'new coins He felt that the bigger drops were like ten cent pieces and the little
ones like fives. The raindrops seemed to him to be like round, sparkling and precious coins. He
knew that this rain would boost a good, harvest and would bring him prosperity just like coins,
However, the same new coins soon changed the face of Lencho's fields. After turning into 'new silver
coins' and 'frozen pearls, the raindrops fell in the form of hailstones. They rained on the house, the
garden, the hillside, the cornfield and on the whole valley. In place of raising the crop better and
bringing prosperity, these frozen raindrops made his field white, as if covered with salt. The corn
was completely destroyed and the flowers had gone from the plants. Not a leaf remained on the
trees, and this filled Lencho's soul with sadness.
1. In the north-east huge mountains of clouds could be seen approaching. The air was
fresh and sweet. The man went out for no other reason than to have the pleasure of feeling
the rain on his body, and when he returned he exclaimed, “These aren’t raindrops falling
from the sky, they are new coins. The big drops are ten cent pieces and the little ones are
fives.”
(c) Which word in the extract means the same as ‘very big’.
2. The moment the letter fell into the mail box the post master went to open it. It said, “God
:, of the money that I asked for, only seventy pesos reached me. Send me the rest, since I
need it very much. But don’t send it to me through the mail because the post office
employees are a bunch of crooks. (1×4=4)
(b) What was in Lencho’s mind when he was writing the letter ?
(c) Find out a word from the passage which is the opposite of ‘honest’.
3. “God” he wrote. “If you don’t help me, my family and I will go hungry this year. I need a
hundred pesos in order to sow my field again and to live until the crop comes, because the
hail storm …………… ” (1×4=4)
4. So, in order to not to shake the writer’s faith in God, the postmaster came up with an
idea : answer the letter. But when he opened it, it was evident that to answer it he needed
something more than good will, ink and paper. But he stuck to his resolution : He asked
money from his employees. (1×4=4)
(b) How did the postmaster help the writer of the letter ?
(c) Which word in the extract means the same as ‘firm decision’ ?
(d) Who is ‘he’ in the passage ?
5. The following Sunday Lencho came a bit earlier than usual to ask if there was a letter for
him. It was the postman himself who handed the letter to him while the postmaster,
experiencing the contentment of a man who has performed a good deed, looked on from his
office. Lencho showed not the slightest surprise on seeing the money; such was his
confidence – but he became angry when he counted the money. God could not have made a
mistake, not could he have denied Lencho what he had requested. (1×4=4)
(b) Why did Lencho become angry while he got the money ?
6. With a satisfied expression he regarded the field of ripe corn with its flowers, draped in a
curtain of rain. But suddenly a strong wind began to blow and along with the rain very
large hailstones began to fall. (1×4=4)