Read the following passage and answer the questions given below:
Gandhiji was a first-class nurse to the sick. Where he picked up nursing was a mystery. He certainly did not pass through a nursing school. As in many other things, when nursing became necessary to him in life, he learned it by the hard way of experience. In the Ashram at Sabarmati, all sick persons came directly under his eye and care.
Doctors were, of course, consulted; but the care of the sick, Gandhiji arranged in person. It was a joke, especially among the people in the Ashram that if you wanted to see Gandhiji every day and talk to him and hear him crack jokes, you had only to be ill and get into bed! For Gandhiji visited the sick every day, spent a few minutes at every bed-side, himself saw things carefully and never failed to crack a joke or two with the patient.
There was no day, too busy for Gandhiji to attend sick persons. There was once a young lad who went down with dysentery. He had done his best to accustom himself to Ashram food but failed. He had a great liking for coffee. But in the Ashram there was no coffee for him nor was coffee allowed. In good time, he got rid of his dysentery and was now recovering. Gandhiji visited him for a few minutes every day during his usual rounds.
Those few minutes were like a tonic to the poor lad. He pined for a cup of good coffee. One day he was lying on his back dreaming of it when he heard the welcome sound of the wooden sandals of Gandhiji. A minute later Gandhiji entered with his never-failing smile and cheering word. He looked at the lad and said, “Now you are decidedly better. You must have recovered your appetite. What would you like to eat ? Ah! some good upma or dosa?”
Gandhiji evidently knew all about the lad’s partiality for these two good old South Indian dishes. Gandhiji was laughing. The youngster had a sudden brain-wave. “Could I have a cup of coffee, please,” he blurted out. Gandhiji answered with a peal of laughter, “Oh, you old sinner, that is what you want!” And then seeing the look on the lad’s face, he added, “You certainly shall have your cup of coffee. Yes, light coffee will soothe your stomach. And what will you have with the coffee? I don’t think we can make upma or dosai, but warm toast would go well with coffee.
I shall send you a tray.” Gandhiji’s cottage was at the other end of the Ashram. Gandhiji himself prepared the coffee because his wife was taking rest. It was an untimely hour. He did not want to give unnecessary trouble to anyone. Coffee was light but excellent. The young lad was troubled when he thought that he had given trouble to Gandhiji to prepare coffee and toast for him.
1. What was a mystery?
2. What was the joke about Gandhiji?
3. What was served with coffee?
4. Why was the young lad troubled?
5. Where was Gandhiji’s cottage in the Ashram?
6. Why did Gandhiji himself prepare coffee?
Choose from the passage the words that mean:
7. Something that is difficult to understand or to explain
8. Being used to
9. Desire for food
