What the lines mean

Open your book, Poorvi, at page 116 and read 'The Winner' again. On page 117 the book picks out four expressions from the poem and asks what they mean.

'Next to the creek': a creek is a small body of water, like a little stream. The children play ball beside it.

'Can't catch my breath': the child has been running so fast that they are out of breath. They are breathless and panting.

'Blue dark turns to black': the colour of the sky changes. In the evening it is dark blue, and then, as night comes, it turns black.

'Trees creep close': in the dark, the trees seem to come nearer, because you cannot see clearly how far away they are and their shapes and shadows run together. The trees do not really move.

The poem also says the cold grass makes their feet ache. The grass is cold because the sun has set and night is coming, and their feet ache after running and playing for so long.