A Letter to God

Introduction: The Hope for Rain

Lencho, a hardworking farmer, lived in the only house in the entire valley, situated on the crest of a low hill.
From his home, he could see the river and his field of ripe corn dotted with flowers, which promised a good harvest.
The only thing the earth needed was a downpour or at least a shower.
Throughout the morning, Lencho looked at the sky towards the north-east, expecting rain.

As Lencho predicted during dinner, big drops of rain began to fall.
Huge mountains of clouds approached from the north-east, and the air was fresh and sweet.
Lencho went outside to feel the rain on his body, exclaiming that the drops were like new coins: the big drops were ten-cent pieces and the little ones were fives.
Suddenly, a strong wind began to blow, and very large hailstones began to fall along with the rain, resembling new silver coins.
The boys ran out to collect the "frozen pearls" while Lencho worried that the storm was getting bad.

The hail rained for an hour on the house, garden, hillside, and cornfield, leaving the field white as if covered with salt.
Not a leaf remained on the trees, the corn was totally destroyed, and the flowers were gone from the plants.
Lencho was filled with sadness, remarking that a plague of locusts would have left more than the hail did.
The family faced a bleak future, fearing they would go hungry that year as all their work had come to nothing.

Despite the total loss, there was a single hope in the hearts of the family: help from God.
Lencho, who had deep faith, believed that God’s eyes see everything, even what is deep in one's conscience.
The following Sunday, Lencho wrote a letter addressed to "God."
He wrote that if God did not help, his family would starve. He requested a hundred pesos to sow his field again and live until the next crop.
He placed a stamp on the letter and dropped it into the mailbox in town.

A postman saw the address and laughed heartily, taking the letter to the postmaster.
The postmaster, a fat and amiable fellow, initially laughed but soon turned serious, admiring the writer's faith.
He wished he had such faith and decided to answer the letter to keep the writer’s faith in God intact.
Upon opening the letter, he realized that goodwill, ink, and paper were not enough; the writer needed money.
Sticking to his resolution, the postmaster collected money from his employees and friends for an "act of charity" and gave part of his own salary.
He could not gather the full hundred pesos but managed to collect a little more than half. He put the money in an envelope addressed to Lencho, signed simply "God."

The following Sunday, Lencho arrived early to ask for his letter. The postman handed it to him while the postmaster watched from his office, feeling the contentment of a good deed.
Lencho showed no surprise at seeing the money but became angry when he counted it. He was confident God could not have made a mistake.
He immediately asked for paper and ink and wrote a second letter with a wrinkled brow, expressing his frustration.
After mailing the letter, the postmaster opened it to read Lencho’s message.
Lencho wrote that only seventy pesos had reached him and asked God to send the rest because he needed it very much.
However, he asked God not to send the money through the mail because he believed the post office employees were a "bunch of crooks."

Quick Navigation:

| | | | |

1 / 1

Quick Navigation:

| | | | |

Quick Navigation:

| | | | |

Watch on YouTube

Quick Navigation:

| | | | |