A Letter to God is the first chapter of Class 10 First Flight (NCERT). It is a short story by Mexican author G.L. Fuentes, translated from Spanish by Donald A. Yates. The story centres on Lencho, a simple farmer with absolute faith in God, and the irony that unfolds when the very people who help him are the ones he suspects of wrongdoing.
Lencho works hard on his fields and expects a good corn harvest. But a severe hailstorm destroys his entire crop. Lencho is devastated but does not lose faith. He writes a letter to God asking for 100 pesos to resow his fields and survive until the next harvest.
The postmaster receives the unusual letter and is moved by Lencho's unshakeable faith. He gathers money from the post office employees and manages to collect 70 pesos. He seals it in an envelope and sends it to Lencho.
Lencho receives the envelope but, on counting the money, finds only 70 pesos — not the 100 he asked for. He is not at all surprised that God answered him. But he is angry that only 70 pesos arrived. He writes a second letter to God, asking for the remaining 30 pesos — but warning God not to send the money through the post office, because 'the post office employees are a bunch of crooks.'
The deep irony is that the people who selflessly helped Lencho are the very ones he suspects of stealing from him.
Lencho
The protagonist; a hardworking farmer with absolute, childlike faith in God. He is simple and uneducated. He writes to God without any doubt that his request will be answered. His innocence leads to the story's central irony — he suspects the kind post office employees of stealing.
Lencho's Wife
A supportive, practical partner. She comforts Lencho after the hailstorm, saying 'Don't be so upset, even though it is a total loss. Remember, no one dies of hunger.' She plays a minor but humanising role.
The Postmaster
A kind-hearted, empathetic man. He is amused but also deeply moved by Lencho's letter. He decides to maintain Lencho's faith in God and collects money from employees to send to Lencho. He represents human goodness and compassion.
Post Office Employees
Unnamed characters who contribute their own money out of charity and admiration for Lencho's faith — yet are ironically suspected as thieves by Lencho in his second letter.
The central theme is faith and irony. Lencho's absolute faith in God is the driving force of the story. The irony lies in the fact that the kind human beings who helped him — the postmaster and employees — are the very people Lencho suspects of stealing. The story also explores the goodness of the human heart through the postmaster's selfless act.
Lencho received only 70 pesos instead of the 100 he asked for. His faith in God was so absolute that he never doubted God would send the money — but he assumed the difference (30 pesos) was stolen. He wrote a second letter asking God to send the remaining 30 pesos but warned God not to use the post office, calling the employees 'a bunch of crooks.' This is the story's great irony.
The irony is that the postmaster and post office employees — who gave their own money out of goodwill to support Lencho's faith — are the very people Lencho accuses of being thieves. The helpers become the suspects. This irony highlights the gap between Lencho's innocent, absolute faith and the complexity of human reality.
Lencho is a hardworking, simple corn farmer with deep, unwavering faith in God. He is uneducated but spiritually strong — comparing himself to an ox who works in the fields. After the hailstorm destroys his crops, he does not despair but writes to God. He is innocent and trusting, which gives the story its irony — his very simplicity causes him to accuse the kind employees of theft.
All through the night, Lencho thought only of his one hope: the help of God, whose eyes, as he had been instructed, see everything, even what is deep in one's conscience.
God: if you don't help me, my family and I will go hungry this year.
A bunch of crooks. Next time I will not tell you to send me money by mail because the post office employees are a bunch of crooks.
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