SSC (English Medium) इयत्ता १० वी - Maharashtra State Board Question Bank Solutions for English

B1. What does the poet want us to do in the following situation?                                                   
(a) While struggling ………..
(b) While making money ………
(c) While dreaming ………………
(d) While losing …………..

It's doing your job the best you can,
And being just to your fellow man;
It's making money-but holding friends,
And being true to your aims and ends.

It's figuring how and learning why,
And looking forward and thinking high;
And dreaming a little and doing much,
It's keeping always in closest touch.

With what is finest in word and deed,
It's being through, yet making speed;

It's daring blithely the field of chance,
While making labour a brave romance.

It’s going onward despite defeat
And fighting staunchly, but keeping sweet;
It's struggling on with the will to win,
But taking loss with a cheerful grin.

B2. Achieving Success
Hints given by the poet to become successful are 
(a) Doing your job the best
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)

B3. Poetic Device
Select the appropriate rhyme scheme for the 3rd stanza. 
(1) abab
(2) aabb
(3) aaba

A1. True or False
State whether the following statements are true or false: 
(1) The author's new house was situated at Bangalore.
(2) The writer was delighted because their new house, was the biggest they ever lived.

One of the advantages of growing up in an Army household was the frequency with which we moved. 'Postings' came with predictable regularity every three years. What was unpredictable and therefore exciting was the suspense. Where would we go this time? Ambala, Pune, Dehradun, Allahabad, Tejpur, Bangalore, Yo! ............ In my short span of thirteen years we had moved lock. stock and barrel eleven times!
Every move meant change. New journeys, new places, new schools, my new books, new uniforms, new friends and new houses. We lived in tents, bashas, Nissen huts, flats and bungalows. No matter what the shape and size of the dwelling, mother soon put her own special stamp on it and transformed it into a familiar place - our home - complete with bright yellow-curtains, coffee-brown carpet, assorted pictures, hanging ferns and potted palms - providing a comforting sense of continuity in our essentially nomadic life.
I was thirteen, the year we moved to the Cantonment at Allahabad. In stark contrast to the razzle-dazzle of the city's commercial areas like Katra and Chowk, the Cantonment was a quiet, orderly place with broad tree-lined roads that still carried the names of long-dead Britishers. Our bungalow was on a sleepy by-lane called MacPherson Road. When we first saw it, my brothers and I were delighted. It was by far the biggest house we had ever lived in. The task of furnishing those huge, echoing rooms daunted Mother.

A2. Complete 
a. The broad tree-lined roads were named after.............................
b. Katra and Chowk are .............................
c. Mother was daunted with the task of................................. .
d. The suspense was exciting because the posting was.........................

A3. Personal response
What do you think are the problems faced by those who change households frequently.

A1. Order
Arrange the following sentences in the chronological order as they appear in the passage:
(i) On celebrations, parents can invest Rs. 200 and plant a sapling of a tree representing the child’s birth star.
(ii) He wants to create Brihat Panchvati.
(iii) He has been able to increase the areas of the Pavitra VanaVana.
(iv) Plans are afoot to create a Saptaswara forest.

Today, Reddy is one of the most well - known environment specialists in India. With his influence, he has been able to increase the areas of the Pavitra Vana and has plans to bring about awareness of Puranic trees and flowers for the knowledge of the Indian citizen.
He wants to create near the Pavitra Vana, a Brihat Panchavati so that parents can show their children the forest where Shakuntala lived or Sita spent her final days. There will also be a hillock where people can meditate. Plans are also afoot create a Saptaswara forest, pertaining to different ragas in music. Scientists have found that certain plants react in a particular way to different ragas. So in such a forest, when a musician performs certain ragas, the plants will reach in such a manner that it will benefit the audience, the musician and the whole environment. The other idea is an ecopark for children. On celebrations, like birthdays, parents can invest Rs. 200 and plant a sapling of a tree representing the child's birth star. The plant will also carry the child's name. The Pavitra Vana also houses a garden of Prophet Mohammed, which has some plants mentioned in the Holy Quran. There is the date plant - sacred to Islam - and the Mimosops elengi, the latter a highly fragrant variety. There is also the garden of Eden for housing plants sacred to Christianity, but the Pavitra Vana authorities have to procure most of them in the new sections.

A2. Find specialities
Write down the specialities of the following:
(i) Brihat Panchavati: ........................ ..... . .
(ii) Saptaswara Forest: ..................... ..... .............. . .
(iii) Eco-park: ..................................... . .
(iv) A garden of Prophet Mohammed:

A3. Antonyms Find antonyms for the following words from the passage:
(i) same
(ii) decrease
(iii) destroy
(iv) lost

A4. Language study
(i) He wants to create near the Pavitra Vana, a Brihat Panchavati. [Pick out an infinitive from the given line and use it in your own sentence]
(ii) Reddy is one of the most well-known environment specialists in India. [Begin with: Very few ………]

A5. Personal Response
Do you think one person alone can create an awareness towards environment conservation ? Support, your answer with appropriate reasons.

B1. Select
Fill in the blanks choosing the correct alternatives from those given in the bracket:
(i) The author was inspired and motivated to read ............................................ by the time she was eleven.
[Shakespeare, Chaucer, G.B. Shaw]

(ii) Every lesson .......................... ......... took was spiced with half a dozen or more anecdotes.
[Mrs. Rowlands, Sister Monica, Mr. A.N. Patil]

(iii) The teachers helped the narrator to become ..................................... . .
[confident, happy, independent]

(iv) Mrs. Cynthia Nesamani and Sister Monica gave .......................................... to the narrator.
[freedom to do what he wanted, advice to do something, instructions to produce better results]

In a way, one of the greatest gifts any teacher can give a student, I think, is to inculcate a curiosity to learn.
I've been incredibly lucky to have at least one such teacher at every stage in my life. The first was Mrs. Rowlands who taught me in primary school. She taught me to read without ever pushing me. She made me want to read more by giving 'me some of the most interesting children's books available. And although I still love to go back to those books from time to time, it was only because of her that I was able to read Shakespeare by the time I was ten, and Chaucer a year later.
In later years, it was Mr. A.N. Patil, my Marathi and Hindi Teacher who made a huge impression on me. Every lesson he took, was spiced with half a dozen or more anecdotes from a wide variety of subjects: among them history, politics, religion and sociology. I was, and still am in awe of his knowledge, which despite rather desperate attempts, I doubt I'll ever be able to match.
There have also been other teachers who helped me to try to become independent: to think and act for myself using my own judgement, which to my mind has been just as, if not more important, than actually learning anything.
After all, it's much too easy to become a completely useless repository of facts and little else.
Two teachers whom I remember in particular are Mrs. Cynthia Nesamani and Sister Monica, both taught me in school. The former, by and large, gave me a free rein to do what I wanted to do. I, being one of those people who dislike instructions, she helped me to produce much better results than I'd have otherwise done.

B2.Complete
Read the extract and complete the following:
The teacher can
(i) .............
(ii) ..............
(iii )..............
(iv).................

B3. Similar word
Look at the following sentences arid pick the word having similar meaning to the given word and rewrite:
(i) Spiced His conversation is always with a lot of humour. (made interesting, garnished, flavoured)
(ii) Repository
The library should not merely be a ................ of books. (store-house, reservoir, tank)
(iii) Inculcate
It is the responsibility of the parents and teachers to .......values in the child's formative years. (imbibe, give, show)
(iv) Incredibly
I have been .. lucky to have at least one such teacher at every stage in my life. (importantly, unbelievably, beautifully)

B4. Language study
(i) There have also been other teachers. They have helped me to try to become
independent. (Combine using 'who')
(ii) It was only because of her that I was able-to read Shakespeare.
(Rewrite beginning with: If it was not for her, ). 

B.5 Out motivators
Look at the following table and complete it by presenting your own views

B1. Find reasons
(i) The effect of receding forest …………………………………. .
(ii) The number of animals is reduced because ………………………. .
(iii) Elephants entered the city because…………………… .
(iv) Elephants lived a wary life …………………….. .

On the left bank of the Ganga, where it emerges from the Himalayan foothills, there is a long stretch of heavy forest. There are villages on the fringe of the forest, inhabited by bamboo cutters and farmers, but there are few signs of commerce or pilgrimage. Hunters, however, have found the area an ideal hunting ground during the last seventy years, and as a result, the animals are not as numerous as they used to be. The trees, too, have been disappearing slowly; and, as the forest recedes, the animals lose their food and shelter and move further on into the foothills. Slowly, they are being denied the right to live
Only the elephants can cross the river. And two years ago, when a large area of the forest was cleared to make way for a refugee resettlement camp, a herd of elephants - finding their favourite food, the green shoots of the bamboo, in short supply - waded across the river. They crashed through the suburbs of Haridwar, knocked down a factory wall, pulled down several tin roofs, held up a train, and left a trail of devastation in their wake until they found a new home in a new forest which was still untouched. Here, they settled down to a new life but an unsettled, wary life. They did not know when men would appear again, with tractors,bulldozers and dynamite.

B2. Find out
Mention four things the elephants did when they found shortage of food:
(i)………………
(ii)………
(iii) …………
(iv) ………….

B3.Phrases
Make meaningful sentences by selecting any two of the following phrases:
(i) to make way for
(ii) in short
(iii) on the fringe of.

B4. Language study
Select the proper alternative to make the correct voice:
(i) Hunters have found an ideal hunting ground.
-An ideal hunting ground ........found by hunters. (had been, has been, was)
(ii) They are being denied the right to live.
- The people ........them the right to live. (are denying, were denying, denying)

B5.Personal response
What would be your contribution to protect the natural habitat of animals?

A1. True or False
State whether the following statements are true or false:
(i) A new research suggests that eating healthy food and getting proper sleep helps children to succeed in school.
(ii) Kids in the age group of 6-12 years should get an average sleep of little less than 7 hours.
(iii) Kids should start their day with yogurt, fruits and veggies.
(iv) Children should have consistent sleeping habit.

A new research suggests that eating healthy food and getting proper sleep can help children succeed in school. According to research, when kids go to school without eating breakfast, their cognitive function can be affected.
According to study, kids should start the day with fruits, proteins and whole grains and they should avoid sugary cereals because they cause a sugar high. If the kids do need to eat something prior to dinner, parents should offer healthy choices like yogurt, fruits and veggies or baked chips. Children have also been advised to drink water instead of soda as-it lacks nutritional value. Moreover, research suggests that children need a good night's sleep for theiroverall school performance. It is said that. lack of sleep can lead to problems with attention and memory in the classroom, affect impulse control and mood regulation lead to.
anxiety and even depression.
While kids aged 6-12 years should get nine hours sleep nightly, adolescents from the age of 13 to 18 years should get an average sleep of little more than seven hours per night. However, the research suggests that catching up on lost sleep on the weekend can make matters worse and recommended a consistent bedtime seven days a week.

A2. Find
Fill in the blocks with the following given in the passage:

(i) Two things to be avoided by children:

(ii) Lack of sleep due to mood regulation leads to:

A3. Select
Select the correct word from the brackets and complete the statements given below:
(anxiety, consistent, impulse, attention)
(i) Last minutes study causes......... to the students.
(ii) Stress affects the.............. for a quick action.
(iii) Saina has shown ........... improvement in her performance.
(iv) Students should pay ..............in class.

A4. Language study
(i) Pick out anyone sentence from the passage where a modal auxiliary indicating advice is used.
(ii) Pick out the correct conjunctions from the given sentences: 
(a) Kids should avoid sugary cereals because they cause a sugar high.
(b) It is said that lack of sleep can lead to problems.

A5. Personal response
We should eat healthy food. Explain..

A1. (i) Two activities that mother was free to do:
(a)...........................................
(b)............................................
(ii)Two activities that children avoided doing because of television:
(a) .....................................
(b) ...................................

Oh yes, we know it keeps them still,
They don't climb out the window sill,
They never fight or kick or punch,
They leave you free to cook the lunch
And wash thedishes in the sink
But did you ever stop to think,
To wonder just exactly what
This does to your beloved tot?
It rots the sense in the head!
It kills imagination dead!
It clogs and clutters up the mind!
It makes a child so dull and blind
He can no longer understand
A fantasy, a fairyland!
His brain becomes as soft as cheese!
His power of thinking rust and freeze!
He cannot think - He only sees!
'All right!' you'll cry. 'All right!' you'll say,
'But if we take the set away,
What shall-we do to entertain
Our darling children? Please explain!'
We'll answer this by asking you,
'What used the darling ones to do?'
'How used they keep themselves contented
Before this monster was invented?'
Have you forgotten? Don't you know?

A2. According to the poem, why is excessive watching of TV harmful?

A3. His brain became as soft as cheese. The figure of speech is ..........because............

B1. Complete the following statements:
(i) The poet is talking about............................. .
(ii) As a nation weare missing our .................................... .
(iii) Old people havekeys ........................... .
(iv) The elderly remember .......................... .

"Oh the value of the elderly! How could anyone not know? They hold so many keys, so many
things they can show.
We all will read the other side this I firmly believe.
And the elderly are closest oh what clues we could retrieve.
For their characters are closest to how we'll be on high.
They are the ones most developed, you can see it if you try.
They've let go of the frivolous and kept things that are dear.
The memories of so sweet, of loved ones that were near.
As a nation we are missing our greatest true resource,
To get to know our elders and let them guide our course."

B2 Express
State what the underlined words mean:
(i) Oh the value of the elderly! State the value ............. .
(ii) They are the ones most developed. 'They' stand for ............. .

B3: Match the words in Column A with their rhyming word in Column B:

He asked. Boy, did he ask! First he asked me for a chance, then he asked nearly all the people he came across if they wanted to buy a telephone system from him. And his asking paid off. As he likes to put it, “Even a blind hog finds an acorn every once in a while.” That simply means that if you ask enough, eventually someone will say ‘yes’.

He cared. He cared about me and his customers. He discovered that when he cared more about taking care of his customers than he cared about taking care of himself, it wasn’t long before he didn’t have to worry about taking care of himself.
Most of all, Cowboy started every day as a winner! He hit the front door expecting something good to happen. He believed that things were going to go his way regardless of what happened. He had no expectation of failure, only an expectation of success. And I’ve found that when you expect success and take action on that expectation, you almost always get success.
Cowboy has made millions of dollars. He has also lost it all, only to get it all back again. In his life as in mine, it has been that once you know and practice the principles of success, they will work for you again and again.
He can also be an inspiration to you. He is proof that it’s not environment or education or technical skills and ability that make you success. He proves that it takes more: it takes the principles we so often overlook or take for granted. These are the principles of that Ya Gotta’s for success.

Question:
(1) What was the cowboy’s motto?
(2) What did the cowboy learn after he lost millions of dollars?
(3) Why did the cowboy firmly believe that asking would pay off?
(4) When you expect success and take action on that expectation you almost always succeed. [Name the part of speech of the underlined words]
(5)
(a) He cared about me and his customers. [Rewrite using ‘not only ……………….but also’’]
(b) Cowboy has made millions of dollars [Add a question tag]

(6) In what way is the cowboy a source of inspiration for you?

Maggu’s achievements are particularly noteworthy because – as is well known – academic institutions in India are less than sold on the idea of inclusive education. In fact, when Maggu lost her sight in class IV, her school (which she declines to name) expelled her while suggesting she attend a “blind school”. Though shocked, Maggu rejected the advice. “Attending a special school would have tarred me with a handicap forever, which was not how I saw my future. Therefore I did the rounds of other public schools with my father, a small – time merchant, explaining that my case was different Since I had vision till the age of ten,” she recalls.
Impressed by her persistence and ambition, Delhi’s Bluebells School not only admitted her but pulled out all the stops to support her in academics sporting events and also notched up a respectable 73 percent average in the class XII exam with the help of Braille, interactive textbooks and extra coaching.
The respectable average in her CBSE exam paved the way for admission into LSR where again she proved her mettle by winning medals in a slew of inter – collage events (100 200 and 400 metre sprints) high jump, long jump, javelin and discuss throw: resulting in her being declared ‘Athlete of the year’ 2003’ at a sports meet for 100 physically challenged athletes. And the cherry on the cake was the selection to the IBSA Games last year. “It was a tough regimen,” recalls Maggu. “I had to attend sports camps manage my studies and officiates as sports president. But I managed.”

Questions:
(1) What qualities of Maggu are highlighted in this passage?
(2) Why did Maggu refuse to attend a ‘blind school’?
(3) Quote the lines that show that Jyoti Maggu was good in academics as well as in sports.
(4) Use any two phrases in sentences of your own :
(a) To win laurels
(b) To pave the way
(c) To prove one’s mettle
(d) A tough regimen
(5)
(a) I did the rounds of other public schools with my father [Change the voice]
(b) though shocked Maggu rejected the advice [Rewrite as a simple sentence]
(6) Should the physically challenged be sent to special schools? Express your views.

(1) Do as directed :
Master: “Well Shailesh, I hear you are taking part in the speaking competition.”
Pupil: “Yes; and I came to ask you to give me some hints on the art of public speaking.” [Change into indirect speech]
(2) The people regarded him ………….. imposter and called him …………. Villain[Insert correct articles]
(3) go then said the ant and dance winter away [Punctuat]

Life is a gift to be used every day,
Not to be smothered and hidden away,
It isn’t a thing to be stored in the chest
Where you gather your keepsakes and treasure your best;
It isn’t a joy to be sipped now and then
And promptly put back in a dark place again

Life is a gift that the humblest may boast of
And one that the humblest may well make the most of
Get out and live it each hour of the day,
Wear it and use it as much as you may,
Don’t keep it in niches and corners and grooves,
You’ll find that in service its beauty improves.

(1) What do we treasure in a chest?
(2) How does the poet went us to use the gift of life?
(3) Do you agree that life should be measured un deeds and not in years? Why?
(4) Which words in the poem mean the following :
     (a) Kept from developing
     (b) Hollow places in a wall
(5) Life is a gift to be used every day. [Name and explain the figure of speech]

India, my India, where the first human eyes awoke to heavenly light! All Asia’s holy place of pilgrimage, great Motherland of might! World – mother, first giver to humankind of philosophy and sacred lore, knowledge thou gav’st to an, God – love, works, art, religion’s opened door.
O even with all that grandeur dwarfed or turned and can vaunt thy mighty name?
Before us still there floats the idea of those splendid days of gold; a new world in our vision wakes, Love’s India we shall rise to mould. India, my India, who dare call thee a thing for pity’s grace today? Mother of wisdom, worship, works nurse of the spirit inward ray!

(1) The poem is a ……………………
    (a) Praise
    (b) Prayer
    (c) Story in the form of poem
    (d) Song of condolence [Choose the correct alternative]
(2) What has India given to the world?
(3) How does the poet visualize New India?
(4) Give the rhyme scheme of the first four lines.
(5) Name and explain the figure of speech that dominates the poem.

We sang our school fight song dozens of times – en route to Arlington National cemetery, and even on an afternoon cruise down the Potomac River. We visited the Lincoln Memorial twice, once in day – light, the second time at dusk. My classmates and I fell silent as we walked in the shadows of those 36 marble columns, one for every state in the Union that Lincoln laboured to preserve. I stood next to Frank at the base of the 19 foot seated statue. Spotlights made the white Georgian marble seem to glow. Together we read famous words from Lincoln’s speech at Gettysburg remembering the most bloody battle in the war between the status : “………….we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain – that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom………..”
As Frank motioned me into place to take my picture, I took one last look at Lincoln’s face. He seemed alive and so terribly sad.
The next morning I understand a little better why he wasn’t smiling. “Clifton,” a chaperone said, “could I see you for a moment?”

(1) When did the boys visit Lincoln Memorial?
(2) What made the Georgian marble glow?
(3) What did the words: “………. We here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain – that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom …………” remind them?
(4) Do you believe in building memorials? What kind should they be, if your answer is ‘yes’? If no, give reasons why you do not believe in memorials?

Read the following extract and answer the questions given below:

If you do not get lowered in your own eyes
While you raise yourself in those of others,
If you do not give in to gossips and lies
Rather heed them not, saying, 'who bothers?'
You may be the person I am looking for.
If you crave not for praise when you win
And look not for sympathy while you lose,
If cheers let not your head toss or spin
And after a set-back, you offer no excuse,
You may be the person I and looking for.

(1) What should be your reaction towards gossips and lies?
(2) Who are your role models? Why?
(3) Give the rhyming pairs of words from the first stanza.
(4) Which line is repeated in this extract and what is its effect?

Read the follow ing extract and answer the questions given below:

Not gold but only men can make
A people great and strong;
Men who for truth and honor's sake
Stand fast and suffer long.

Brave men who work while others sleep,
Who dare while others fly...

They build a nation's pillars deep
And lift them to the sky.

(1) What makes a nation strong?
(2) According to you, what makes India a strong and powerful nation?.
(3) Write down the rhyme scheme used in the extract.
(4) What does the phrase 'others fly ... ' mean?

Read the following extract and answer the questions given below:

How do you know
Peace is a woman?
 I know, for
I met her yesterday
on my winding way 
to the world's fare.
She had such a wonderful face
just like a golden flower faded
before her prime.

(1) How does the poet describe the face of peace?
(2) Do you think there is a way out of the war-ridden world? What is it?.
(3) Name and explain the figure of speech in the following line:
"I met her yesterday 
on my winding way."
(4) The poet asks the question and herself answers it. What effect does it create in the extract?

State whether the following statements are true or false.

Anil made money by fits and starts. He would borrow one week, lend the
next. He kept worrying about his next cheque, but as soon as it arrived he
would go out and celebrate. It seems he wrote for magazines — a queer way
to make a living!
One evening he came home with a small bundle of notes, saying he had
just sold a book to a publisher. At night, I saw him tuck the money under the
mattress.
            I had been working for Anil for almost a month and, apart from cheating on
the shopping, had not done anything in my line of work. I had every opportunity
for doing so. Anil had given me a key to the door, and I could come and go
as I pleased. He was the most trusting person I had ever met.
              And that is why it was so difficult to rob him. It’s easy to rob a greedy
man, because he can afford to be robbed; but it’s difficult to rob a careless
man — sometimes he doesn’t even notice he’s been robbed and that takes all
the pleasure out of the work.
          Well, it’s time I did some real work, I told myself; I’m out of practice.
And if I don’t take the money, he’ll only waste it on his friends. After all, he
doesn’t even pay me.
           Anil was asleep. A beam of moonlight stepped over the balcony and fell on
the bed. I sat up on the floor, considering the situation. If I took the money, I
could catch the 10.30 Express to Lucknow. Slipping out of the blanket, I crept
up to the bed. Anil was sleeping peacefully. His face was clear and unlined;
even I had more marks on my face, though mine were mostly scars.
            My hand slid under the mattress, searching for the notes. When I found
them, I drew them out without a sound. Anil sighed in his sleep and turned on
his side, towards me. I was startled and quickly crawled out of the room.

(a) Anil writes for magazines for a living -
(b) Anil kept a small bundle of notes in a cupboard -
(c) The narrator used to cheat Anil on the shopping -
(d) After stealing the money the narrator quickly crawled out of the room -

(A2) Complete the following sentences with the help of the given passage.
(1) The narrator was thinking to catch
(2) When Anil was sleeping peacefully, his face was
(3) The narrator slid his hands under the mattress to
(4) The narrator thought that If he didn’t take money, Anil would only waste

(A3) Cross out the odd man.
(i) blanket, magazine, maintain, mattress.

(ii) rob, take, time, search.
(iii) queer, small, greedy, pleasure
(iv) quickly, mostly, money, peacefully.

(A4) Rewrite the following sentences by choosing correct tail tag given in the
brackets.
(does he ?, didn’t he ?, isn’t it?, wasn’t he?, doesn’t he?, is it?)
(i) Anil was sleeping peacefully.
(ii) He doesn’t even notice he’s been robbed.
(iii) Anil kept worrying about his next cheque.
(iv) It’s difficult to rob a careless man.

(A5) What will you do if you are robbed by someone you know very well?

Read the following poem and write an appreciation of it with the help of the given points in paragraph format.

Where the Mind is Without Fear …
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high
where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic walls
Where words come out from the depth of truth
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit
Where the mind is led forward by Thee
Into ever-widening thought and action
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.
- Rabindranath Tagore

Read the following passage and do the activities.

We have a hibiscus plant in our garden. Every fortnight a flower blooms on it - big, bright and tender. Through the day it smiles with the sun and dances with the wind, but as evening approaches, it starts wilting. The morning after, it withers completely and by evening it falls and becomes one with the earth again. The flower comes to life only for a day, yet it does so in full splendour. What if we too lived our life, however short, to its fullest?
We went to a rocky beach and saw the spread of the majestic ocean and the rocks alongside, carved, sculpted and shaped by the water. Water is so gentle, rock so hard, yet, as the water flows over it every day, for years, the rock gives in. It takes the shape that the water commands. Our problems are so colossal and we are so small, yet if we persist...
We saw small bits of grass peeping through the small cracks in a concrete pavement. It left us thinking: however impossible things may look, there is always an opening...
We saw a tree bare of all leaves in the cold winter months. We thought its chapter was over. But three months passed, spring set in and the tree was back to its green majesty once again, full of leaves, flowers, birds and life. What if we too had the conviction that, however difficult things are right now, it will not remain so for ever. Remember, this too shall pass.

(A1) Rewrite the following sentences in proper sequence. 02
(a) It starts wilting.
(b) Through the day, it smiles with the sun.
(c) It withers completely.
(d) Every fortnight a flower blooms.

(A2) Complete the following sentences. 02
(1) Our problems are ……………………….. .
(2) However impossible things may look ………………………………………..

(A3) Match the columns. 02

(A4) (1) Do as directed. 02
(a) We went to the rocky beach and saw the spread of the majestic ocean. (Begin with ‘After going to….’)
(b) We have a hibiscus plant in our garden. (Write a question to which the underlined word is the answer).

(A5) What role does nature play in our lives? 02