Class 8 English Chapter 8 A short Monsoon Diary Notes
| Text Book | NCERT |
| Class | Class 8 |
| Subject | English |
| Book Name | Honeydew |
| Chapter Name | A short Monsoon Diary |
| Category | Class 8 English |
Summary
These are a few extracts from Ruskin Bond’s diary. They show the silent miracles of nature and life’s little joys and regrets. They are about author’s experiences during the monsoon months in Mussoorie. Monsoon starts in the last week of June and continues till the end of August.
June 24
It is the first day of monsoon mist. The mist has concealed the hills. It has also silenced the birds. The author hears Bijju calling to his sister. He can feel that Bijju is running. However the mist doesn’t let him see Biju. The mist appears to change the hills in two ways. It conceals the hills from view. It also makes them silent. It is so because the birds fall silent in the mist.
June 25
The rain is warm and humid. So it is not as uncomfortable as the rain in winter. The flowers are coming up. The author describes the hill station and valley in one sentence, It is : ‘A paradise that might have been.’
June 27
The monsoon had brought leeches. A leopard has also been seen. It has been stealing dogs and other animals. Some seasonal flowers also appear. More importantly new birds appear. Among them are minivets. These are brightly coloured (birds). They sit silently among the leaves.
August 2
It has rained all night. The sound of the rainfall on the tin roof pleases the author. One is untouched and yet in touch with the rain.
August 3
The rain stops. There is sunshine. People, animals and birds are out in the open once again. The song of a whistling thrush coming from a distance pleases the author.
August 12
It has been raining non-stop for more than a week. Everything is damp. One can go out only with an umbrella. But it is not cold. The hills are covered with flowers.
August 31
Monsoon growth is visible everywhere. The seeds of the cobra lily are turning red. This is an indication that the rains are coming to an end. All holes are full of rainwater. So snakes and rodents have taken shelter in roofs, attics and godowns.
October 3
This year monsoon rain continued much longer than usual. Now there is winter rain, A hailstorm has cleared the sky.
January 26
The author wrote a poem about winter rain. The winter rain makes the author more lonely. A friend who had been staying with him has left. Unlike the monsoon rain, there are no flowers in the winter rain.
March 23
It is the end of winter. After a hailstorm, there is a rainbow in the clear sky.
Word Meanings
| Word | Meaning |
| mist | fog |
| fall silent | stop chattering |
| melancholy | very sad |
| conceal | hide |
| ringing | re-echoing |
| deathly still | silent like a dead body |
| genuine | real |
| humid | damp |
| stuff | materials |
| rears | raises |
| affords | gives |
| privacy | aloofness |
| heralded | announced |
| arrival | coming |
| lifted | pick up |
| fled | ran away |
| screaming | shouting |
| imprecations | curses |
| bloodletting | losing blood |
| scarlet | blood red |
| minivets | a bird |
| flitting | flying swiftly |
| brilliant | shining |
| contrive | manage |
| unnoticed | unmarked |
| unnecessarily | uselessly |
| aggressive | ready to quarrel |
| chasing | running after |
| tree creeper | an insectivorous bird |
| rapidly | fast |
| snapping | grabbing |
| dearth | want |
| drumming | beating as on a drum |
| corrugated | grooved |
| steady | slow but constant |
| swish | hissing sound |
| springing | creating |
| unaccountable | for which no reason can be given |
| tinkle | the ringing sound |
| caws | gives out the crowing voice |
| disconsolately | unhappily |
| drips | falls |
| whistling thrush | a singing bird |
| emerges | is heard |
| ravine | valley |
| damp | not dry |
| soggy | sodden |
| pace | walk |
| bobbing | moving up and down |
| lush | green |
| balsam , dahlias , begonias | flower |
| signifying | indicating |
| upright | standing erect |
| display | show |
| slopes | inclined planes |
| rocky | stony |
| crevices | narrow opening |
| taken hold | rooted |
| attics | lofts |
| shrew | a bird |
| blunders | commit a big mistake |
| admonishes | rebukes |
| suffused | filled |
| hushed | complete |
| surrounded | encircled |
| drift | fall |
| drenched | wet |
| caress | touching loving |
| menace | threaten |
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