English Language & Literature — CBSE Class 10 board question

The line "people will take balls, balls will be lost always" reflects the universal truth that material losses are inevitable in life. The boy losing his ball is his first experience of permanent loss — something money cannot restore. The poet suggests that such losses teach children to accept grief, move on, and understand the world's indifference to personal sorrow. Thus, material loss becomes the first lesson in emotional maturity and resilience, preparing one for harsher realities ahead.

• The examiner wants you to connect the specific line to the theme of loss as a learning experience.
• Key ideas: inevitability of loss, no replacement for emotional attachment, the boy learning to "stand up" and cope — this is the poem's central message.
• Avoid simply paraphrasing; show the link between material loss → emotional growth → understanding life's harsh realities.
• About 70–80 words is ideal for 3 marks.