Class X Lesson I Letter to God

 

Letter to God

1. Introduction to the story

The narrative takes place in a remote valley, in a lonely house perched on a hill, where a farmer named Lencho lives with his family. Rain is something Lencho, a hardworking farmer who knows his land well, looks forward to. The story traces his strong faith and eventual sorrow as his promising cornfield is destroyed by a terrible hailstorm. Lencho's unshakable conviction in divine intervention causes him to seek assistance in an uncommon way through an unexpected turn of events, demonstrating the resiliency and belief of people.

2. Theme of the story

The story's main topic is optimism and trust in the face of hardship. Lencho's confidence in heavenly help emphasizes how faith may help people get through difficult circumstances. The story also examines the irony and simplicity of rural living, emphasizing the ways in which a pure faith can occasionally collide with the difficulties of everyday existence. The efforts of the mailman and his co-workers, who work to uphold Lencho's faith, also illustrate the story's elements of empathy and compassion.

3. Character Sketch of the Protagonist

Lencho is shown as a modest and industrious farmer who is deeply devoted to his land and its requirements. Given how hard he works the fields and how he handles natural adversity, his character exemplifies perseverance. Though he presents a harsh appearance, he is deeply religious, and once his crops are destroyed, this becomes his source of hope. Lencho's frankness comes through as he sends a letter to God without hesitation, demonstrating his innocent faith in the goodness and justice of God. Lencho is an engrossing and sympathetic protagonist because of his courage, simplicity, and unshakable faith.

4. Summary

The narrative begins with a description of Lencho's isolated home in a valley, with a view of his in need of rain cornfields. An experienced farmer named Lencho tells his wife he hopes for rain. When the rain finally starts to fall as they are having supper, Lencho is happy at first because he compares the droplets to coins of wealth. But the rain soon transforms into a fierce hailstorm that utterly destroys Lencho's crops.

With the thought of going a year without food, despair descends upon Lencho and his family. But Lencho refuses to give up on God and does not think that heavenly assistance is far off. He chooses to send a letter to God, pleading for a hundred pesos so that he might replenish his crops and provide for his family until the following harvest. Sent by God with the assurance that He will supply the money, Lencho demonstrates his deep but uncomplicated faith.

Upon receiving Lencho's letter, the post office staff are first amused. But Lencho's faith moves the postmaster, who chooses to offer assistance. Despite his efforts, he is only able to obtain seventy pesos in cash from friends and co-workers. The money and a note signed "God" are sent to Lencho by the postmaster.

Lencho is not shocked to see the money when he gets it, but he is upset because it is less than what he asked for. He comes to the conclusion that the postal workers must have taken the thirty pesos that went missing since he doesn't think God could have made a mistake. Lencho requests the remaining funds in a second letter to God, warning him against sending it via the postal service as he thinks the workers are liars.

कहानी की शुरुआत एक घाटी में लेन्चो के अलग-थलग घर के वर्णन से होती है, जिसमें उसे मकई के खेतों के लिए बारिश की ज़रूरत होती है। लेंचो नाम का एक अनुभवी किसान अपनी पत्नी से कहता है कि उसे बारिश की उम्मीद है। जब वे रात का खाना खा रहे होते हैं तो अंततः बारिश होने लगती है, लेन्चो सबसे पहले खुश होता है क्योंकि वह बूंदों की तुलना धन के सिक्कों से करता है। लेकिन बारिश जल्द ही भयंकर ओलावृष्टि में बदल जाती है जो लेंचो की फसलों को पूरी तरह से नष्ट कर देती है।

भोजन के बिना एक वर्ष गुज़ारने के विचार से, लेंचो और उसके परिवार पर निराशा छा जाती है। लेकिन लैंचो ने ईश्वर को छोड़ने से इंकार कर दिया और यह नहीं सोचा कि स्वर्गीय सहायता दूर है। उसने भगवान को एक पत्र भेजकर सौ पेसो की मांग की ताकि वह अपनी फसलों की भरपाई कर सके और अगली फसल तक अपने परिवार का भरण-पोषण कर सके। भगवान द्वारा इस आश्वासन के साथ भेजा गया कि वह धन की आपूर्ति करेगा, लेन्चो अपने गहरे लेकिन सरल विश्वास का प्रदर्शन करता है।

लेंचो का पत्र पाकर, डाकघर के कर्मचारी पहले तो खुश हो गए। लेकिन लेंचो का विश्वास पोस्टमास्टर को प्रेरित करता है, जो सहायता की पेशकश करना चुनता है। अपने प्रयासों के बावजूद, वह मित्रों और सहकर्मियों से केवल सत्तर पेसो नकद प्राप्त करने में सक्षम है। पैसे और "भगवान" हस्ताक्षरित एक नोट पोस्टमास्टर द्वारा लेंचो को भेजा जाता है।

जब लेन्चो को पैसे मिलते हैं तो वह उसे देखकर आश्चर्यचकित नहीं होता है, लेकिन वह निराश हो जाता है क्योंकि यह उसके द्वारा मांगे गए पैसे से कम है। वह इस निष्कर्ष पर पहुंचा कि डाक कर्मियों ने गायब हुए तीस पेसो को ले लिया होगा क्योंकि उसे नहीं लगता कि भगवान ने कोई गलती की होगी। लेन्चो ने भगवान को दूसरे पत्र में शेष धनराशि का अनुरोध किया, और उसे डाक सेवा के माध्यम से इसे भेजने के खिलाफ चेतावनी दी क्योंकि उसे लगता है कि कर्मचारी झूठे हैं।

Conclusion

The story "The House" deftly examines the paradoxes of life and human faith. Lencho's steadfast conviction in supernatural intervention demonstrates the depth of human faith and the optimism it may provide throughout difficult circumstances. The acts of the mailman and his co-workers, who make an effort to assist Lencho in spite of his misgivings about their honesty, provide as another lens through which the drama explores human generosity. In the end, "The House" offers a subtle critique of faith, fortitude, and the sometimes-comic character of human aspirations and reality.

 

Answer the following questions

1. What did Lencho hope for?

Ans: In order to irrigate his crops, Lencho prayed for rain. His cornfields were prepared for harvest, but he required a strong downpour to guarantee a healthy crop.

2. Why did Lencho say the raindrops were like ‘new coins’?

Ans: Raindrops are a sign of riches and success, so much so that Lencho compared them to "new coins." His family would have financial stability if the rain brought forth a big harvest. To him, rain was just as precious as money; the larger droplets stood for ten-cent coins, and the smaller ones for five-cent pieces.

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

Ans: At first the rain was a comfort and a delight, but it quickly intensified into a violent hailstorm. For around sixty minutes, the fields were blanketed with enormous hailstones that dropped with the force of an hour. Lencho's cornfield was devastated by the storm, which stripped the trees and plants of their leaves and left nothing to harvest. Every crop was destroyed, and the fields were in ruins.

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

Ans: Lencho felt hopeless and depressed when the hail ceased. When he saw that the hailstorm had destroyed his entire crop, he knew that his family would be without food and money for the whole year. He was full of despair and fear for their lives.

5. Who or what did Lencho have faith in? What did he do?

Ans: Lencho addressed a letter to God, pleading for a hundred pesos so that he could replant his crops and provide for his family until the next harvest, since he had confidence in God and felt that God would help him in his hour of need.

6. Who read the letter?

Ans: An employee of the post office read the letter and showed it to the postmaster. After reading the letter, the postmaster was struck by Lencho's faith.

 

7. What did the postmaster do then? 

Ans: Lencho's faith motivated the postmaster to provide assistance. Along with contributing a percentage of his own pay, he also gathered money from his staff. He was only able to gather seventy pesos, not the whole hundred, and he wrote Lencho a letter signed "God" for the money.  

8. Was Lencho surprised to find a letter for him with money in it?

Ans: Lencho was not surprised to see a letter containing cash addressed to him. He was quite certain that God would provide for him, and he anticipated hearing back from God.

9. What made him angry?

Ans: When Lencho counted the money, he discovered just seventy pesos instead of the hundred he had asked for, which infuriated him. He came to the conclusion that the post office workers had to have taken the final thirty pesos since he was certain that God could not have made a mistake. This prompted him to compose a second letter to God in which he declared the postal workers to be robbers and prayed for God to give him the remaining funds.

 

Answer the following questions: (Thinking About the text)

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

Ans: Lencho believes in God exclusively. The narrative makes this clear in a number of places, including "All through the night, Lencho thought only of his one hope: the help of God" and "God, if you don't help me, my family and I will go hungry this year."

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

Ans: Lencho's steadfast trust in God touches the postmaster, who decides to send him money. He wants to support Lencho throughout his difficult period and maintain his faith. In order to keep Lencho's faith in divine intervention intact, he signed the letter "God" to give the impression that the money really came from the supernatural.

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

Ans: Because Lencho was positive that the money was from God, he made no attempt to ascertain the sender. His unwavering belief in supernatural intervention was demonstrated by his unwavering faith, which prevented him from questioning the source.

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: Lencho believes the remaining funds have been seized by the post office staff. The irony is that the people who gathered and contributed the funds to support him are the same ones he accuses of stealing. The irony of this circumstance lies in the fact that Lencho's mistrust is aimed toward his benefactors, emphasizing how unexpected his appreciation and skepticism are.                                                                                                                

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

Ans: The hailstorm that decimates Lencho's crops serves as a metaphor for the clash between humanity and nature, highlighting the unpredictability and devastating force of the natural world. Lencho's suspicion of the post office staff, in spite of their sincere attempts to assist him, illustrates the struggle that exists between people. Themes of interpersonal miscommunication and distrust are highlighted by this inherent human battle.