First Flight (LESSON)

CHAPTER 1:
A LETTER TO GOD
- By G.L.Fuentes

Lencho was a farmer, his house was the only house in the valley and on top of a hill. Lencho's fields
needed rain for a good harvest. He looked expectantly at the sky and it did rain at last . The drops of
rain were like the coins for him, which would help him reap a good harvest and earn some money for
his family. But his happiness was short lived as very large hailstones began to fall after the rain and
destroyed his crop. There was a single hope -help from God, On the following Sunday ,he wrote a
letter to God. He needed a hundred pesos to sow his fields again and to live until the new crop came.
He wrote 'To God ' on the envelope and put the letter into the mail box. The postman laughed
heartily and took it to the postmaster ,the postmaster laughed too but soon he became serious. He
decided to reply the letter and help Lencho, as he did not want Lencho to lose faith in God.
Postmaster could collect seventy pesos only, from his employees and he himself also contributed a
part of his salary. He put the money in an envelope and posted it to Lencho. Lencho was happy but
not at all surprised when he received the money because he had an unbroken faith in God . His
happiness turned into anger as there were only seventy pesos instead of hundred pesos . Lencho
could never believe that God could ever deceive him . So, he wrote another letter to God reminding
him that he received only 70 pesos sent by him He asked God not to send the rest of 30 pesos
through the mail as the post office employees were a ' bunch of crooks. Whom did Lencho write a
letter? What did he ask for and why? What were Lencho's feelings when he found the letter with
money in it? What did he do after opening it? Why does the postmaster send money to Lencho?
Why does he sign the letter 'God'? What are the raindrops compared to and why? Who does Lencho
think has taken the rest of the money? Describe the ironical ending of the story?

NELSON MANDELA : LONG WALK TO

FREEDOM
- by Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela

The inauguration ceremony of the first non-racial government was held in the Union Buildings in
Pretoria. Politicians and dignitaries from more than 140 countries attended the ceremony. Nelson
Mandela was then sworn-in as the President of Republic of South Africa. For decades South Africa
had been the seat of white supremacy .The blacks were considered as outlaws. Their victory over
“apartheid” was a common victory for justice, peace and freedom. Nelson Mandela was
overwhelmed with a sense of history. The society based on racial discrimination was the harshest
and the most inhuman society in the world. The decades of oppression and exploitation of the blacks
produced- heroes like Tambo's, Sisulu and others in South Africa. Mandela learned the meaning of
courage which does not mean absence of fear rather it means victory over fear. Every man has twin
responsibilities / obligations - towards his family and for his people and country. If any black tried to
live like a free human being, he was punished and isolated from his family and community. Mandela
realised that not only he but his brothers and sisters were deprived of freedom. His desire for the
freedom and dignity of his people made him a rebel. He realised that freedom is indivisible. What did
Nelson Mandela pledge when he was sworn-in as President? What is the greatest wealth of a
country according to Nelson Mandela? What are the two obligations every man has in life? What
according to Mandela is “true freedom”? Why did Nelson Mandela feel that both the oppressor and
the oppressed are robbed of their humanity and hence both of them must be liberated?

CHAPTER 3 : TWO STORIES ABOUT FLYING

PART I : HIS FIRST FLIGHT
-author Liam O'flaherty

displays the importance of family and friends in overcoming the fears in our life through the story of
a young Seagull who was unable to take his first flight. A family of seagulls had mother, father, three
sons and a daughter. The youngest son was fearful to take his first flight as he believed his small
Wings would not support him, also he was afraid of the height of the Cliff from the Sea. The parents
cajoled him and kept him hungry to let him learn a lesson. When the young Seagull couldn't take the
Hunger and heat anymore the mother Seagull brought a piece of fish near him. The young Seagull
tried to grab the piece from his mother's mouth. In doing so he reached the edge of the Cliff and fell
from there as the mother Seagull moved away from the edge. Initially fear hovered him but soon he
flapped his wings and soared and finally landed on the green sea taking his first flight. The whole
family rejoiced and cackled. Why did the baby seagull not take his first flight? Describe how the baby
seagull took his first flight.

PART II: THE BLACK AEROPLANE

The narrator Frederick Forsyth was flying his Dakota from France to England to meet his family in
holidays and enjoy a good English breakfast with his family. When he flew at night the sky was clear
and as instructed by Paris control he turned 12 degrees West. When he was about 150 kilometres
away from Paris his saw the approaching storm. He took the risk and flew into it. The compass and
other instruments stopped working. The plane tossed and twisted in the air and he couldn't contact
Paris control. Suddenly a black aeroplane appeared without lights on its wings. The pilot waved him
and signalled to follow him. It was strange that he flew for halfn hour even when he had fuel left only
for five or ten minutes. Suddenly he saw the Runway and landed safely. He wanted to thank the pilot
of the black aeroplane but was shocked to see no one there. He went to the control room to enquire
about him but found that no other aeroplane except his was there in the sky that night. He was
awestruck at the miracle. 1 Why did the narrator take the risk to go through the storm? 2 What
miracle happened with the narrator?

CHAPTER 4 FROM THE DIARY OF ANNE

FRANK
Anne Frank was a 13 year old Jewish girl who wrote a diary while her family was hiding in Amsterdam
from the Naziz who were incurring atrocities during World War II. Anne wrote the diary to overcome
loneliness in her life. She named it Kitty. She couldn't confide in anyone and felt that paper has more
patience. Also she thought nobody would be interested in the diary as she was a small girl. Anne
adored her father. She had an elder sister Margot and they lived in Frankfurt before they migrated to
Holland for refuge. Her mother stayed behind with her grandmother. She had sweet memories of
Mrs. Kuperus at Montessori School. Her grandmother fell ill in 1941 and died in 1942. This broke her.
Anne considered teachers to be the most unpredictable creatures on earth. She had good
relationship with all teachers except Mr Keesing who punished her several times for talking too much
during the lessons. She wrote an essay on A Chatterbox as punishment, saying that talking was a
student's trait and she inherited it from her mother. Again as punishment she wrote an essay on An
Incorrigible Chatterbox. Then she wrote an essay on Quack Quack Quack said Mistress Chatterbox.
Her friend Sanne helped her write it in verse. It said that father Duck beat the three ducklings as they
quacked too much and made them deaf. Mr Keesing took the joke in the right way and didn't bother
Anne for talking thereafter and didn't give her any extra homework. Why did Anne think of writing a
diary? What joke did Anne play with the help of her friend on Mr. Keesing?

CHAPTER 5 – GLIMPSES OF INDIA

I. A BAKER FROM GOA
-by Lucio Rodrigues

The Portuguese in Goa were lovers of bread. Those eaters of bread have now gone but
its makers still exist. During the childhood days of the narrator, a baker used to be their
friend, companion and guide. The baker came twice a day- once in the morning and
again while returning home after finishing his selling. The jingling thud of the baker’s
bamboo woke up the sleeping children. The loaves were delivered to the servants of the
house. The children would peep into the baker’s basket for the bread bangles. The
children would eat bread with hot tea. The marriages were incomplete without the
popular bol bread. Bolinhas was a must during Christmas and all other festivals. The
bakers wore a particular knee length frock known as kabai. Baking was a profitable
profession. Bakers had a plump physique testifying to this. The bakers collected their bills
at the end of the month 1. How is a baker important to the Goan people?

II. COORG
-by Lokesh Abrol Coorg or Kodagu
the smallest district of Karnataka, is a heavenly place. The best season to visit it is from
September to March. The people living there are probably the descendants of Arabs or
Greeks. Their culture is apparent in their martial traditions, marriages and religious rites.
The Kodavus wear a long, black, embroidered coat called Kuppia. The Coorg Regiment is
one of the most decorated regiments in the Indian Army. Kodavus are the only people in
India permitted to carry firearms without a license. The river Kaveri begins from the hills
and forests of Coorg. A variety of plants, birds and animals can be seen there. The place
offers a number of adventure sports for the tourists. The Tibetan monks are amongst
many surprises that can be seen there What is the story about the Kodavu’s people’s
descent?

III. TEA FROM ASSAM

-By Arup Kumar Dutta
Pranjol and Rajvir were visiting Assam by train. Rajvir was busy looking at the beautiful
scenery outside the train. It was green everywhere as far as the eye could see. The soft
green paddy bushes gave way to tea bushes. Assam has the largest concentration of tea
plantation in the world. The Chinese are said to have discovered tea. There is also an
Indian legend saying that Bodhidharma discovered tea. From China, tea came to the
European countries and then to Asian countries. Pranjol’s father managed Dhekiabari, a
tea garden. There were many tea pluckers around the tea bushes. The best tea is
obtained between May to July. What are the various legends about the origin of tea?
What glimpses of India have been presented in the lesson? Which one do you like the
most?

Chapter 6 Mijbil the Otter

After the death of his dog, the author decides to keep an otter as his pet. As per his
friend’s suggestion, he got an otter from Tigris Marshes. The author felt that coming of
the otter started a new phase of his life. The otter first appeared as a small dragon. He
was coated with mud. It took ajot of time and effort for the author to remove the dust.
The otter loved to play with water, and could not stand still in front of it. He also loved to
play with the rubber ball. Marble toys were his favourite. After some days, the author
had to come back to London. The transporting of Mijbil to London became a problem.
British airline did not permit animals on its flights. Another airline agreed to take the
animal if packed in a box. The author made a small box for the otter. While in the plane,
the otter escaped from the box. Some passengers. Shouted and stood on their seats on
seeing the otter in the plane. At last, the otter came back and settled on the author’s
knees. On reaching London, people did not recognise the otter. They just made random
guesses. Mijbil played with ping-pong ball and develops certain playing habits in London.

CHAPTER 7 : MADAM RIDES THE BUS

-by Vallikannan
The story is about an eight year old girl named Valliammai. She was very curious to know
about things. Her favourite pastime was to stand at the front doorway of her house and
see what was happening in the street outside. She would watch the bus that passed
every hour from her village to the nearest town. She developed a desire to ride the bus.
This became her deepest desire. Valli found out the details of the bus journey by
listening carefully to the conversations between her neighbours and regular bus users.
She came to know that the town was just six miles from her village and the fare for the
bus journey was thirty paise one way. The trip took 45 minutes. Valli planned her visit to
the town. She saved sixty paise for the fare. Finally, one day she took the one o’clock bus
to the town. Valli was very happy to have got into the bus. On the way to the town, Valli
saw a cow running right in front of the bus. She clapped as the cow kept on running
towards the bus despite the continuous honking by the driver. Valli did not get off the
bus when it reached the town. She also declined the offer of a cold drink by the
conductor. On the return journey, she saw the same cow lying dead by the roadside. This
unpleasant sight made her very sad. The bus reached the village at three forty. She ran
straight for her home after getting down the bus.Her mother did not come to know
about her journey. Why does the conductor call Valli “madam”? “And even when we do
know about something we often can't understand it completely, can we?” Elaborate with
reference to the chapter Madam Rides the Bus.
CHAPTER 8 : THE SERMON AT BENARES
-by Betty Renshaw

This lesson tells about the life of Gautam Buddha, who was born in a royal family as Siddhartha. Once
he saw a funeral procession and monk begging for the alms. These sights moved him a lot and he
decided to become a monk and started moving in search of enlightenment. He started meditation
under a peepal tree and after seven days he got enlightenment and he became known as the Buddha
( the awakened or enlightened) The Buddha preached his first sermon at Benares. Once a woman
named Kisa Gotami asked the Buddha to give her a medicine to bring her dead son to life. The
Buddha told her to bring him a handful of mustard seeds from a house where no one had died. Kisa
Gotami could not get the seeds as she did not find anyone who had not lost his family member. She
thought that she was really selfish in her grief. Death was common to all. Yet there lay a path. That
led man to immortality if he surrendered all selfishness. The Buddha told her that human life was
brief and painful. All depart from life. He who is off the lamentation and grief shall have peace of
mind. One who has overcome sorrow will be free from sorrow and be blessed. How did Gautam
Buddha make Kisa Gotmi understand the common truth of life that “Death is common to all”? What
had happened to Kisa Gotami’s son? Why couldn’t she get a handful of mustard seeds from any
house? According to Gautam Buddha, how can one become free from the grief of death and decay?

CHAPTER 9: THE PROPOSAL

-by Anton Chekov Lomov

Chubukov’s neighbour asks for Chubulov’s daughter, Natalya’s hand in marriage, Chubukov gets filled
with excitement . Lomov is a 35 year- old gentleman who suffers from palpitations, gets upset very
easily and doesn’t sleep well. According to him, Natalya is average-looking and a good housekeeper.
While talking about his property, Lomov somehow mentions about Oxen Meadows which earlier was
a disputed property but is now his. Natalya believes that Oxen Meadows belong to her family. Both
of them enter into a heated discussion. Chubukov unintentionally reveals that Lomov had come with
a marriage proposal for Natalya which surprises Natalya and she immediately regrets sending him
out. When Lomov returns, they enter into another argument involving their dogs. Everyone gets
hyper and Lomov finally falls due to his palpitations. It is only when Lomov moves a little bit, they
feed him some water and Chubukov forcefully hands over Natalya’s hands to him, gives his blessings
and asks them to kiss. Lomov, still not fully conscious doesn’t understand what is going on. When he
finally comes to his senses, he expresses his excitement and kisses Natalya’s hands. Natalya, being
childish as she is, once again, starts quarrelling on another issue. Justify the title of the drama “The
Proposal”. Describe how does Natalya react before and after knowing the real purpose of Lomov’s
visit. Does she act sensibly? ➢ 10 Besides Oxen Meadows, what is the other important cause of
quarrel between Lomov and Natalya?