A Letter to God

Lencho was a farmer. The only thing he desired and prayed for were showers for his field of ripe corn, so that it could harvest well. If the showers did not come, the crop would die, and it would lead to a big loss.

Lencho had planted corn crops that were ready to be harvested. The crops still required some rain to provide a proper harvest. Since his profit depended on the rain, he called the raindrops ‘new coins.’ Also, he represented big drops as ten cents and smaller ones as fives.

The season welcomed good rains and Lencho was certain he would get a good harvest. However, the rains soon turned into storms accompanied by winds and hailstorms. The harsh weather destroyed his crops completely, leaving the field white as if covered with salt.

Amidst the adversity, Lencho still had faith in God. He believed that God from heaven above had seen him suffering and would ease his pain. His faith was so strong that he wrote a letter to God asking for a hundred pesos to cultivate a new crop again.

The postmaster read the letter. Initially, he laughed, but soon became serious, impressed by the sender’s faith. He decided to answer the letter to keep the writer’s faith in God alive. He collected money from his employees and friends and gave part of his own salary to send to Lencho.

No, Lencho was not surprised at all. His confidence and faith in God were so strong that he expected the reply and the help as a matter of fact.

Lencho became angry when he counted the money. He had asked for 100 pesos, but there were only 70 pesos. He was sure God could not make a mistake, so he concluded the post office employees must have stolen the missing amount.

Lencho has complete faith in God. Sentences that show this include:

• “Lencho thought only of his one hope: the help of God.”
• “God,” he wrote, “if you don’t help me, my family and I will go hungry this year.”
• “God could not have made a mistake, nor could he have denied Lencho what he had requested.”

Lencho thinks the post office employees have taken the rest of the money (30 pesos). The irony is that these same employees were the ones who contributed the money to help him in the first place, yet he calls them a “bunch of crooks.”

A “dust of snow” means the fine, smooth particles of snow. The poet’s mood changed from disappointment to happiness when the dust of snow fell on him from the hemlock tree. This effortless little thing brought him joy.

Frost uses unconventional symbols:

• A crow (usually associated with fear/bad omens).
• A hemlock tree (a poisonous tree).

Despite these negative symbols, they bring him joy (the snow), suggesting that happiness can be found in the darkest places.

The rhyme scheme is a, b, a, a; b, c, b, c, b. This interweaving helps bring out the contrasting ideas of fire and ice as two inevitable ends of the world.