Class 10 English – A Letter to God | Original Visual Revision Notes

📚 1. Classroom Notes

About the Story

Author: G.L. Fuentes (a Mexican writer)
The story is set in a valley with one house on a hill.
A poor farmer named Lencho lives there.
He grows corn and depends on rain to survive.
This is a story about deep, unshakeable faith in God.
It shows how kindness can be misunderstood.
The story ends with a surprising twist called irony.

Main Characters

Lencho: A hardworking farmer. He has total faith in God.
Lencho's wife: A caring woman. She cooks and trusts God.
The Postmaster: A kind, amiable (friendly) man. He helps Lencho.
Post office workers: They also donate money to help Lencho.

Part 1 — Rain Turns to Hailstorm

Lencho is happy. He sees dark clouds coming from the north-east.
He tells his wife: "We are going to get good rain today."
Rain starts during dinner. Lencho calls the drops "new coins."
Big drops = ten-cent coins. Small drops = five-cent coins.
Suddenly the wind blows hard. Hailstones begin to fall like stones.
For one full hour, hail destroys everything in the field.
The corn crop is completely ruined. Not a leaf is left on trees.

Part 2 — Lencho Writes to God

Lencho is sad. But he has one hope — help from God.
He knows God's eyes see everything, even deep in our hearts.
On Sunday morning, Lencho writes a letter to God.
He asks God to send him 100 pesos to sow the field again.
He walks to town and drops the letter in the post box.
The address on the envelope says: "To God."

Part 3 — The Postmaster's Kind Act

A postman finds the letter and laughs. He shows it to the postmaster.
The postmaster laughs first, then feels deeply moved.
He admires Lencho's faith. He decides to reply as God.
He collects money from workers and donates part of his salary.
He can only gather 70 pesos, not the full 100.
He sends the money with a note signed: "God."

Part 4 — The Ironic Ending

Lencho comes to the post office the next Sunday.
He gets the letter and counts the money — only 70 pesos.
He is NOT surprised. He was sure God would send money.
But he is ANGRY — 30 pesos are missing!
He writes another letter to God asking for the rest of the money.
He warns God: "Do not send it through the post office."
He calls the post office workers "a bunch of crooks."

Theme and Message

Irony: The people who helped Lencho are called thieves by him.
Faith: Lencho's faith in God is total and unquestioning.
Kindness: The postmaster shows genuine goodness and empathy.
Conflict 1: Humans vs. Nature — the hailstorm destroys the crop.
Conflict 2: Humans vs. Humans — Lencho suspects the workers.
The story asks: Is blind faith always good?

Key Literary Devices

Metaphor: Raindrops = new coins (raindrops are compared to money).
Metaphor: Huge mountains of clouds (clouds look massive like mountains).
Metaphor: Lencho was "an ox of a man" (he worked like a strong animal).
Irony: The helpers are called crooks by the person they helped.
Simile: The field was white "as if covered with salt."

✏️ 3. Worked Examples

Question 1: Why did Lencho compare raindrops to coins?

1 Lencho was a poor farmer.

2 Rain would save his corn crop and bring him money.

3 So each raindrop felt as valuable as a coin to him.

Answer: For Lencho, rain meant a good harvest. A good harvest meant money. So each drop of rain felt like a real coin. The big drops felt like ten-cent coins. The small drops felt like five-cent coins. This metaphor shows how precious rain was to a farmer.

Question 2: What does the postmaster's action tell us about him?

1 He read Lencho's letter and was moved by his faith.

2 He did not want to break Lencho's belief in God.

3 He used his own money and collected from others.

Answer: The postmaster was a kind and generous man. He admired Lencho's deep faith. He did not want a good man's faith to be shaken. So he organised money from his workers and himself. This shows he was empathetic and selfless. He expected nothing in return.

Question 3: What is the irony at the end of the story?

1 The postmaster and workers helped Lencho with real kindness.

2 Lencho received 70 pesos — but he expected 100.

3 He blamed the post office workers for stealing the 30 pesos.

Answer: The irony is that the very people who helped Lencho got called thieves. The postmaster's kind act was completely misunderstood. Lencho's blind faith in God made him suspect the humans who actually helped him. This is the unexpected, ironic twist that makes the story memorable.

📋 4. Cheat Sheet — Vocabulary

Word	Simple Meaning	Used in Story as
Amiable	Friendly and pleasant	The postmaster was amiable (nice)
Contentment	Feeling of happiness and satisfaction	Postmaster felt contentment after helping
Conscience	Inner sense of right and wrong	God's eyes see deep into one's conscience
Postmaster	Head of the post office	He read Lencho's letter to God
Hailstones	Balls of ice that fall like rain	Hail destroyed Lencho's crops
Draped	Covered loosely with cloth or rain	The cornfield was draped in rain
Locust	A crop-destroying flying insect	Lencho said even locusts leave more
Harvest	The collected crop at end of season	Lencho needed rain for his harvest
Pesos	Money used in Latin American countries	Lencho asked for 100 pesos
Solitary	Alone; only one in a place	The solitary house on the valley hill
Correspondence	Letters exchanged between two people	The postmaster marvelled at Lencho's faith
Irony	Opposite of what is expected; surprising twist	Helpers called crooks = irony
Charity	Giving freely to help someone in need	Workers gave money as an act of charity
Intimately	Very closely and deeply	Lencho knew his fields intimately

🏠 5. Take-Home Handout

🆕 A. Fill in the Blanks

Lencho's house was on the ________ of a low hill. (crest / slope)
Lencho compared raindrops to ________. (new coins / flowers)
The ________ destroyed Lencho's corn crop completely. (hailstorm / flood)
Lencho asked God to send him ________ pesos. (100 / 200)
The postmaster signed the reply as ________. (God / Postmaster)
Lencho called the post office workers a bunch of ________. (crooks / liars)

✅ B. True or False

Lencho was a rich landowner. (True / False)
Hailstones are small balls of ice. (True / False)
The postmaster personally replied as God. (True / False)
Lencho received the full 100 pesos. (True / False)
Lencho thanked the post office workers. (True / False)

👥 C. Match the Columns

Column A	Column B
Lencho	Wrote the reply signed as God
Postmaster	Wrote a letter asking for 100 pesos
Hailstorm	Helped collect money for Lencho
Post office workers	Destroyed Lencho's entire corn crop

📝 D. Short Answer Questions

Why was Lencho watching the sky in the morning?
How did the rain change into something harmful?
Why did the postmaster decide to reply as God?
Why was Lencho angry when he counted the money?

🤔 E. Think and Write

Do you think Lencho's unquestioning faith was a strength or a weakness? Write 4-5 sentences with reasons.

Answers — Take-Home Handout

A. Fill in the Blanks: 1. crest 2. new coins 3. hailstorm 4. 100 5. God 6. crooks

B. True or False: 1. False 2. True 3. True 4. False 5. False

C. Match: Lencho → wrote letter asking for 100 pesos. Postmaster → wrote reply signed as God. Hailstorm → destroyed crop. Post office workers → helped collect money.

D. Short Answers:
1. Lencho was watching the sky because his corn crops needed rain urgently.
2. First, good rain fell. Then a strong wind came. Big hailstones began to fall and destroyed everything.
3. The postmaster admired Lencho's faith in God. He did not want that faith to be broken. So he decided to act as God and send money.
4. Lencho expected 100 pesos. He received only 70. He was sure God would not make a mistake. So he concluded that the post office workers had stolen 30 pesos.

E. Sample Answer: Lencho's faith was strong but also blind. His strength was that he never gave up hope. He trusted that someone would help him. But his weakness was that he could not see the truth. The people who helped him were real humans, not God. He rewarded their kindness with suspicion. So his blind faith made him ungrateful without meaning to be.

🃏 6. Revision Flashcards

Who is the main character in the story?

Lencho — a poor, hardworking corn farmer

What destroyed Lencho's crop?

A hailstorm — big pieces of ice falling from the sky

How many pesos did Lencho ask God for?

100 pesos — to sow his field and feed his family

How much money did Lencho actually receive?

Only 70 pesos — the postmaster could not collect more

What did the postmaster sign at the end of the reply?

He signed it as "God" to protect Lencho's faith

What is the irony at the end of the story?

The helpers were called thieves by the man they helped

What literary device is used when raindrops = coins?

Metaphor — comparing two unlike things directly

What is the theme of this story?

Faith, kindness, and the irony of blind belief

📖 Class 10 English – First Flight – Lesson 1
A Letter to God — Original Visual Revision Notes Aligned with the Class 10 English syllabus. Independently created study material. Not affiliated with or endorsed by NCERT.

📚 1. Classroom Notes

About the Story

Main Characters

Part 1 — Rain Turns to Hailstorm

Part 2 — Lencho Writes to God

Part 3 — The Postmaster's Kind Act

Part 4 — The Ironic Ending

Theme and Message

Key Literary Devices

🎨 2. Easy Illustrations

✏️ 3. Worked Examples

📋 4. Cheat Sheet — Vocabulary

🏠 5. Take-Home Handout

🆕 A. Fill in the Blanks

✅ B. True or False

👥 C. Match the Columns

📝 D. Short Answer Questions

🤔 E. Think and Write

Answers — Take-Home Handout

🃏 6. Revision Flashcards

🧠 7. Mind Map

📖 Class 10 English – First Flight – Lesson 1A Letter to God — Original Visual Revision Notes Aligned with the Class 10 English syllabus. Independently created study material. Not affiliated with or endorsed by NCERT.

📚 1. Classroom Notes

About the Story

Main Characters

Part 1 — Rain Turns to Hailstorm

Part 2 — Lencho Writes to God

Part 3 — The Postmaster's Kind Act

Part 4 — The Ironic Ending

Theme and Message

Key Literary Devices

🎨 2. Easy Illustrations

✏️ 3. Worked Examples

📋 4. Cheat Sheet — Vocabulary

🏠 5. Take-Home Handout

🆕 A. Fill in the Blanks

✅ B. True or False

👥 C. Match the Columns

📝 D. Short Answer Questions

🤔 E. Think and Write

Answers — Take-Home Handout

🃏 6. Revision Flashcards

🧠 7. Mind Map

📖 Class 10 English – First Flight – Lesson 1
A Letter to God — Original Visual Revision Notes Aligned with the Class 10 English syllabus. Independently created study material. Not affiliated with or endorsed by NCERT.