A Short Monsoon Diary

A1. Discuss:Discuss with your partner the following points:

The reason why people write diaries What they write in diaries How and when they write diaries Importance of maintaining a diary

A2. Monsoon seasonThink of Monsoon season, which is the special feature of Indian climatic condition. Draw a picture of nature as you see during Monsoon season. Think of all the details that you would draw.

A3. Monsoon seasonThink of a rainy season and develop a word register by writing words related to rain.

Monsoon season A4. TitleRead the given pages of diary and choose the correct alternative which summarizes the text: The main idea expressed by Ruskin Bond in the text is:

Monsoon and is magic Monsoon and Mountains Monsoon and Mussorie

June 24The first day of monsoon mist. And it’s strange how all the birds fall silent as the mist comes climbing up the hill. Perhaps that’s what makes the mist so melancholy; not only does it conceal the hills, it blankets them in silence too. Only an hour ago the trees were ringing with birdsong. And now the forest is deathly still, as through it were midnights.

A5. Describing wordsGlance through all the pages of the diary and list down all those words that describe the Monsoon season.

Find out Effect on the birds = Mist is sad because = Effect of mist on hills = Forest spears =

June 25Some genuine early monsoon rain, warm and humid, and not that cold high-

altitude stuff we’ve been having all year. The plants seem to know it too, and the first cobra lily rears its head from the ferns as I walk up to the bank and post office.

The mist affords certain privacy.A schoolboy asked me to describe the hill station and valley in one sentence,

and all I could say was: ‘A paradise that might have been.’

Find out: Early monsoon rain = Effect on plants = Hill station and valley are compared to =

June 27The rains have heralded the arrival of some seasonal visitors – a leopard and

several thousand leeches. Other new arrivals are the scarlet minivets (the females are yellow), flitting silently among the leaves like brilliant jewels. No matter how leafy the trees, these brightly coloured birds cannot conceal themselves, although, by remaining absolutely silent, they sometimes contrive to go unnoticed. Along come a pair of drongos, unnecessarily aggressive, chasing the minivets away.

A tree creeper moves rapidly up the trunk of the oak tree, snapping up insects all the way. Now that the rains are here, there is no dearth of food for the insectivorous bids.

Find out:The new arrivals are =The birds cannot =

The tree creeper =The food for the bird =

August 2.All night the rain has been drumming on the corrugated tin roof. There has

been no storm, no thunder, just the steady swish of a tropical downpour. It helps me to lie awake; at the same time, it doesn’t keep me from sleeping.

It is a good sound to read by – the rain outside, the quiet within – and, although tin roofs are given to springing unaccountable, leaks, there is a feeling of being untouched by, and yet in touch with, the rain.

Find out: The falling of rain =The effect of the rain=The feelings of the winter =

August 3The rain stops. The cloud begins to break up; the sun strikes the sleep hill on my left. A woman is chopping up sticks. I hear the tinkle of cow bells. In the Oak tree a crow shakes the rain drops from his feathers and cause disconsolately. Water drips from a leaking drain pipe. And suddenly, clear and pure the song of the whistling thrush emerges like a dark sweet secret from the depths of ravine.

Find out:After effect of rain = Sounds heard =Sweet secret =

August 12Endless rain and a permanent mist. We haven’t seen the sun for eight or nine

days. Everything damp and soggy. Nowhere to go. Pace the room, look out of the window at a few bobbing umbrellas. At least it isn’t cold rain. The hillsides are lush as late – monsoon flowers begin to appear – wild balsam, dahlias, begonias and ground orchids.

Find out:Effect of continuous rain =The effect on the hillsides =

August 31It is the last day of August, and the lush monsoon growth has reached its

peak. The seeds of the cobra lily are turning red, signifying that the rains are coming to an end.

In a few days the ferns will start turning yellow, but right now they are still firm, green and upright. Ground orchids, mauve lady’s slipper and the white butterfly orchids put on fashion display on the grassy slopes of Landour. Wild dahlias, red, yellow and magenta, rear their heads from the rocky crevices where they have taken hold’.

Snakes and rodents, flooded out of their holes and burrows, take shelter in roofs, attics and godowns. A shrew week of eyesight, blunders about the rooms, much to the amusement of the children.

Find out:Change in the nature =Change of colour =Effect on the children =

A6. Now go through all the pages of ‘The Monsoon Diary’, and answer the following questions:

1. What makes the mist melancholy?2. What does the writer see on his way to the bank and post-office?3. How does the writer describe the Valley in one sentence?4. Why can’t the scarlet minivets conceal themselves?5. How has the writer described the flowers in the valley?6. What amuses the children?7. What makes the writer feel that the birds have fallen silent?8. What are the feelings expressed by the writer to the diary page of August 27.

How does he feel? 9. What do you do on Monsoon days at home?10.Do you like he Monsoon season? Why?

11.What change have you observed around you in your recent past?

A7. Birds and Insects Glance through the pages of a diary and put the names of birds and insects in two boxes:

Picture of a bird Picture of an insect

A8. Complete Read the pages of the diary again and complete the following:

1. Lady’s slippers means ……………….. a. Slippers worn by a ladyb. a type of cactusc. a type of flowerd. type of vegetable

2. Snakes and rodents come out …………… a. In search of a shelterb. In search of waterc. In search of foodd. In search of friends

3. As the mist comes climbing up …………… a. The bids start chirpingb. The birds fall silentc. The birds fly awayd. The birds make a lot of noise

4. Cobra lily is ……………….. a. A type of cobrab. A type of flowerc. A type of animald. A type of food

5. …. blunders about the rooms, much to amusement of childrena. Snakesb. Rabbitc. Shrewd. Cat

A9. Describing words:Look at the following words from the pages of the diary. Find out the describing words used for the same:

1. Visitors2. Minarets3. Downpour4. Mist5. Birds6. Slopes

A10. Time of actionLook at the following sentences. Observe the underlined part and discuss with your partner the questions given below. Note your observations and points.The rain stops.The clouds begin to break up.The sun strikes the sleep hill.

Discuss:What is the action indicated in each sentence?What is the time of action?What does the use of the tense indicate?

Fill in the correct verb forms:1. Mandy and Susan _____ films every weekend. (watch / watches)2. ____ I correct? (is/am/are)3. The boys ____ always mischievous. (is/are/am)4. The Monsoon season ____ late. (are/is)

A11. Match.Match the phrases in column A with their meanings in column B

A B1. snapping a. not affected by something 2. blunder about b. lack of something3. to break up c. to go way in different directions

4. death of d. to move about in an awkward way 5. untouched by e. to obtain something quickly

A12. Write a diaryWrite a diary entry of what you did from Monday to Wednesday this week and what you plan to do on a Sunday. You may use some of the following expressions.

What I did from Monday o Wednesday What I shall do on a Sunday I went _________ * I will get up ___ I was shocked _____ * I will ___ I was unable to tell _______ * I shall go out to ___ I realized _____ * We will _______

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