Rearrange the following sentences to form a meaningful paragraph.

(A) Spending time among plants, caring for greenery, and watching living things grow provides a restorative break from screen fatigue.
(B) Consequently, urban gardening has emerged as a popular therapeutic practice for city dwellers seeking tranquility.
(C) In modern metropolitan life, relentless work deadlines and urban noise frequently exhaust people's mental energy.
(D) This surge in botanical hobbies highlights an increasing emphasis on mindfulness and self-care in daily routines.
(E) Individuals are increasingly turning to small-scale green spaces to restore their sense of inner calm.

Which of the following is the FIRST sentence after rearrangement?

The correct answer is C.

To determine the correct logical order of the paragraph, let us analyze the role of each sentence:

1. Sentence (C) introduces the overarching problem: "In modern metropolitan life, relentless work deadlines and urban noise frequently exhaust people's mental energy." This broad thematic introduction establishes the background context, making it the ideal introductory/first sentence.

2. Sentence (E) follows (C) by explaining how people respond to this mental exhaustion: "Individuals are increasingly turning to small-scale green spaces to restore their sense of inner calm."

3. Sentence (A) elaborates on sentence (E) by detailing the specific restorative benefits: "Spending time among plants, caring for greenery, and watching living things grow provides a restorative break from screen fatigue."

4. Sentence (B) links logically using "Consequently": "Consequently, urban gardening has emerged as a popular therapeutic practice for city dwellers seeking tranquility."

5. Sentence (D) concludes the paragraph by reflecting on the trend: "This surge in botanical hobbies highlights an increasing emphasis on mindfulness and self-care in daily routines." Here, "This surge in botanical hobbies" refers directly to urban gardening in (B).

The logical order of the complete paragraph is C - E - A - B - D.

Thus, the FIRST sentence after rearrangement is (C).