Down the block at 1814 Beech Avenue lived Mr and Mrs Newton. She was short
and round and neat. He was tall and thin and careful. Their house was as neat as a pin. Not even a shoe was out of place. Their meals were always on time. The neighbour’s children knew that they should keep off their grass. When they stepped on it, Mr.
Newton did not like it.
The Newtons didn’t know much about children. But they did know that children make
noise. They knew children are likely to mess up the house and spill things. The Newtons did not like anything to be messed up or spilt. They liked everything to be just so.
Did the Newtons like children?
The Newtons were busy doing things all day long. Together they knitted, baked, and built things. Mr Newton made a tall clock that looked like a tree. It had a little bird that would fly out and sing sweetly. He made it all, and it was just right. Everything about the Newtons’ lives was quiet and careful and neat. One afternoon the Newtons got a letter. Mrs. Newton opened it right away for they did not get many letters.
Madrid 30 September 03 Dear grandma and grandpapa, Surprise! One of these days soon you are going to get a surprise! There will be a knock at the door. When you open it, there we will be–all of us! Love and kisses. Your grandchildren
“How can this be?” asked Mrs Newton. “We have no grandchildren. Somebody is playing a joke on us.” Mr Newton said, “It’s not a funny joke. When they knock, we just won’t answer the door. Children make a lot of noise and mess.” The next morning Mrs Newton got out her mixer. “I’ll make some cookies for the grandchildren if they come,” she said. The days went by and they waited and they waited for a knock. No one came.
Finally, Monday afternoon, Mr Newton said, “Maybe we read the letter wrong.” He
read it again. He looked at the letter for a long, long time.
“We have made an awful mistake,” he said quietly. “This letter was for 1814 Birch Avenue. The grandchildren are not for us.” They were both sad. It was very quiet in the little house. Then one afternoon an idea came to Mr. Newton. He put an ad in the paper. The ad read:
Wanted Grandchildren to borrow. Any size or age. Please come to 1814 Beech Avenue on Saturday morning at nine.
There were only five days before Saturday. The Newtons made toys and baked
more cookies. Finally, it was Saturday. They waited and waited, but no one came. They waited all morning. They had worked so hard and hoped so hard. But no one came.
Mr Newton went out into the yard. A little boy came by on his bike.
Mr Newton said, “Hello there. What’s your name?” “Davey,” the boy answered. “My mom saw your ad in the paper where you wanted to borrow some kids.
She says no one would ask for kids when they could have a neat and quiet house.”
“Not us,” said Mr. Newton. “We have too much quiet. Our house is too neat. We would like children to visit us. We have never had any children. We would like to borrow some. Tell all your friends.” “You mean it?” asked Davey. “I really mean it!” said Mr Newton. “I’ll tell them. I’ll ride all over.” Almost before the Newtons knew
it, there was a knock at the door. Children came!
Why did Davey ask, “You mean it?”
Some looked happy. Some were very quiet. In a short time, they had all been hugged and welcomed. Then there was another knock, and more children were on the porch.
“I am glad we made more cookies,” said Mrs. Newton. Then more came, and more. Their house was full of children, of all sizes and ages! It was more than they had hoped for. The ones who liked trucks and trains had trucks and trains to play with. The ones who liked dolls had dolls. They played with the dollhouse. They were pleased that Mr Newton had made all the dolls and toys for them.
They had a wonderful time all afternoon.
The children left late in the afternoon. They promised to come back the next Saturday.
The neat little house was a mess. Even the clock went tock-tick. But Mrs Newton looked very pleased. “Do you think there were enough toys and cookies for everybody?” she asked.
“There was enough of everything,” said Mr Newton. “Toys and cookies and LOVE!”
Q. 1. Read the letter given in the lesson carefully and answer the following questions:
(i) When was the letter written?
Ans. The letter was written on 30th September 2003.
(ii) Where was the letter sent from?
Ans. The letter was sent from Madrid.
(iii) Whom was the letter sent to?
Ans. The letter was sent to my grandparents.
(iv) What was the main message in the letter?
Ans. The main message in the letter was that the grandchildren are going to give a surprise visit to their grandparents.
(v) Who wrote the letter?
Ans. The grandchildren wrote the letter.
Q.2. How was the address on the letter different from the address of the Newtons?
Ans. The Newtons lived at Beech Avenue where the letter was addressed to Birch Avenue.
Q. 3. Do you find anything funny in the ad put in the newspaper? If yes, what is it?
Ans. The funny thing in the ad was they wanted to borrow grandchildren of any size and age.
Q.4. What did the grandchildren play with?
Ans. The grandchildren played with trucks, trains, dolls, toys and doll-house.
Q. 5. Did the children enjoy the time they spent with the grandparents?
Ans. Yes, the children enjoyed the time they spent with their grandparents.
Q. 6. “Even the clocks went tock-tick (i) How do clocks go?
Ans. The clocks go tock-tick.
(ii) Why does the writer say that the clock went tock-tick? Ans. The writer says that the clock went tock-tick because the children messed with it.
Q.7. Name the things that the Newtons gave to the children.
Ans. The Newtons gave toys and cookies to the children
