Our little river twists and turns
It’s just knee-deep when summer burns,
How easy is it then to cross,
Cattle and carts just ford across,
The banks slope gently, though they’re high,
And in the summer, always dry.
No dirt no mud: it all so clean,
The sand glints with a golden gleam,
And to one side, there stands a bed
Of ‘Kash’, with white flowers overspread,
Flocks of ‘mynahs’ gather there
And with their chatter filling the air,
While deep at night the jackal’s prowl,
Piercing the silence with their howl.
Groves of palm and mango trees
Upon the other bank, one sees,
Nestling beneath their leafy shade
The village houses stand arrayed,
Along the bank, the children play,
Splash each other, duck and spray,
Or sometimes, having had their bath,
Catch small fish in bits of cloth,
The village women by that spot
scrub with sand their pans and pots.
They wash their clothes and have their bath,
Then back they take the homeward path .
And then, often the rains begin
The river fills up to the brim,
It rushes then upon its course
In muddy whirls and deafening roars,
Upon the banks, among the woods
A call rings out in a joyful mood,
And the village wakes again
To mark the festival of the rain.
[A] Put the tick () against the right one and cross (x) against the wrong one :
1. The river is knee-deep in summer. ( )
2. It is not easy to cross the river in summer. (x)
3. The river is straight. (x)
4. The river is dirty.(x)
5. Children play in the river. (x)
6. The village houses are situated far away from the river. (x).
7. The river fills itself up to the brim in summer.(x)
8. They enjoy a festival in the rainy season. ( )
[B] Answer the following questions :
Q. 1. How is the river?
Ans. The river is a little one.
Q. 2. Why is it easy to cross the river in summer?
Ans. It is easy to cross the river in summer be- cause it is just knee-deep.
Q. 3. Can the animals also cross the river in summer?
Ans. Yes, the animals can also cross the river in summer.
Q.4. How do the river banks look like in summer?
Ans. The river banks are very dry in summer
Q.5. Why does the sand glint and gleam?
Ans. The sand glint and gleams because there is no dirt, no mud and it is very clean.
Q.6. Why do the jackals go there at night?
Ans. The jackals go there in search of prey.
Q.7. On which side of the river are the village houses situated?
Ans. The village houses are on the other side of the river where there are trees.
Q. 8. In which season does the river fill up to the brim?
Ans. The river fills upto the brim in the rainy season.
Q.9. How does the river water look ?
Ans. The river water looks muddy in the rainy season.
Q. 10. Why do the villagers have a joyful. ” mood? Ans. The villagers have a joyful mood to celebrate the festival of the rain.