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Lawrence’s good fortune had only
begun. In the evening, he was told that
he would be honoured for his bravery,
and that the district administration had
decided to give him a scholarship to

help him improve his swimming skills.

Lawrence was honoured with a prize.
The District Collector who gave away
the prize, asked him, ‘Lawrence, when
you ran to save the young boy, you must
have realized that as a result you would

be late for the race, so what made you take the right decision?’

‘It was not difficult, Sir,’ said Lawrence. ‘I realized that if I could not swim to save the life
of a young boy, my reputation as the fastest 100-metre swimmer in the district would be
meaningless.’ The audience broke into rapturous applause.

—Manoj T Thomas

rapturous: full of
Time to answer excitement, enthusiasm

A. Choose the correct answer.

1. Which of these lines tell you that Lawrence was fond of swimming?

I. ‘If I could not swim to save the life of a young boy, my reputation as the fastest
100-metre swimmer in the district would be meaningless.’
II. But he loved the sea too much; it was not possible for him to come out of the sea

very easily.
III. He had the rare gift of swimming fast as well as swimming over long distances.

IV. Lawrence allowed the waves to lift him up and carry him towards the shore.

I and II II and III III and IV II and IV

2. Why did Lawrence consider the chance to represent his district in swimming to be the
biggest break in his life?

because that would be a way out from his present state of poverty
because that would mean he would never have to go to school ever

because then he could go swimming over long distances

because then he could buy a watch and a pair of shoes for himself

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