A Letter to God

About the author:

Gregorio López Fuentes (1895-1966) was one of the most important chroniclers of the Mexican Revolution and its effects. His famous works are Campamento (1931; “Encampment”), Tierra (1932; “Earth”), Mi general! (1934; “My General!”), and El Indio (1935; “The Indian”).

Summary

The main character of the story is Lencho, a dedicated farmer. He was expecting a decent harvest. But unfortunately, an untimely hailstorm destroyed his harvest totally. Lencho was very sad although he had a very strong faith in God. He was sure that God would definitely help him out of this adverse situation. He was an extremely simple and straightforward man. He composed a letter to God, in which he asks God to send him one hundred pesos. He then went to the post office and put the letter into the post box,

A postman collected the letter from the letterbox. Obviously, he was amused by reading the address on the envelop. He rushed to the postmaster and showed him the strange letter. The postmaster also chuckled in the same way when he saw the address of God. However, he didn’t want to shake the farmer’s faith in God. So, he read the letter. He decided to help him. As he could not spare 100 Pesos, he asked the employees of the post office to contribute to a good cause. He himself gave a part of his salary for the cause. But he was able to collect only a little more than half the money requested by Lencho. The postmaster put the money in an envelope and addressed it to Lechno. 

The following Sunday, Lencho visited the post office again to find out if there was any letter for him. The postman took out the letter and gave it to Lencho. Lencho was not at all surprised at seeing the money. But when he counted the money, he became angry. He thought that God could not have made the mistake. He took paper and ink and wrote another letter to God and put it into the letterbox.

After Lencho had gone, the contents of the letter were read. In this letter, Lencho had complained to God that he had received only seventy Pesos. This time he requested God to send him the rest of the money also. But he asked God not to send the money through the mail. He thought that the post-office employees were a bunch of crooks and that they had stolen the rest of the money.

Meanings of words and phrases

• crest - the top of a mountain or hill
• dotted - a place having objects scattered or placed in a random manner
• downpour - heavy rain
• intimately - in a way that involves detailed knowledge
• supper - a light informal evening meal
• predict - say or estimate that an event or action will happen in the future
• cent - a monetary unit in various countries
• draped - to be covered
• regarded - to consider or think of in a specified way
• hailstones - small, hard balls of ice that fall from the sky like rain
• resemble - look alike
• plague - an unusually large number of insects or animals infesting a place and causing damage
• locusts - large, tropical grasshoppers with strong powers of flight
• solitary - alone, lonely
• conscience - a person's moral sense of right and wrong
• pesos - the standard unit of money used in Argentina, Mexico, and some other countries
• amiable - goodhearted and kind
• correspondence - communication by exchanging letters
• evident - clearly seen or understood
• goodwill - friendly, helpful, or cooperative feelings or attitude
• deliberate - intentional
• resolution - determination
• obliged - legally or morally bound to do something
• contentment - a state of happiness or satisfaction
• deny - to refuse to give something requested or desired to someone
• affixed - to stick securely
• crook - a dishonest person  or a criminal

Character Sketches:

Lencho:

Lencho is a lonely, hardworking farmer. Lencho knew his fields well. He was as strong as an ox. Not only did he work like an animal in the fields, but he also knew how to write. Even when his crops are destroyed due to the hailstorm, he doesn’t lose hope and writes a letter to God. Such was his faith in God that when he sees the money in the mail, he is not even a bit surprised. Lencho is also naïve (lacking wisdom). He is innocent as he believed that God would send him the required money, just by asking. He is naïve when he believed that the people in the post office are crooks. Thus we see that although Lencho is a hardworking and god-loving man, his naivety got the better of him. 

The Postmaster:

The Postmaster comes across as a genuine man. He went out of his way to do an act of goodwill for a stranger. Though he broke out laughing as he received the letter, he is determined not to shake his faith in helping the man in need.  He gave away a part of his salary and collected money from his acquaintances so that he could help Lencho retain his faith in God. So, we see that the postmaster was an amiable and kind person.

The theme of the story:

G.L. Fuentes’ "A Letter to God", is a story of a farmer’s undeterred faith in God and his failing faith in humanity. From the very beginning, Lencho shows faith in nature. He was sure that it would rain and he would have a good harvest of corn. He writes a letter to God demanding a hundred pesos. Lencho’s faith in God takes a step further when he writes another letter in anger. He was sure that God would help him with the required money. He assumed that the remaining thirty pesos were taken away by the post office employees. And hence, he asked God not to send the money by mail.

It is rightly said that faith can move mountains. But it is important to know what we should put our faith in. The Almighty does help those in need by his own ways and means. It may be by the means of a random stranger or our teacher or our parents. We must thank each one of them for even the slightest that they may do for us.