The Ugly Duckling: It was a warm summer morning. The sun was shining, and a mother duck sat on her nest near the pond. She had been waiting for her eggs to hatch.
One by one, the eggs began to crack. “Peep! Peep!” came the little ducklings, yellow and soft. Mother duck smiled. But the biggest egg didn’t hatch. It sat still and quiet.
Finally, after a long time, the last egg cracked open. Out came a large gray duckling. He was not soft and yellow. He looked different from the others.
The other ducklings stared. “He’s so big and ugly,” one of them whispered. The gray duckling looked down. He didn’t understand why he didn’t look like his brothers and sisters.
As days passed, things got worse. The small ducklings didn’t want to play with him. The chickens in the farmyard pecked at him. Even the cat laughed at his long neck and big feet.
“Go away!” they said. “You don’t belong here.”
So the gray duckling ran from the farm. He crossed fields, hid in bushes, and found a pond. He stayed there alone, feeling cold and sad.
Winter came. The pond froze. The gray duckling had no food. He lay still in the snow, weak and tired.
One morning, a kind farmer found him. The farmer picked him up and took him home. He gave the duckling food and warmth. The duckling rested by the fire, safe at last.
When spring came, the duckling was stronger. He left the farmer’s house and walked toward a new pond. There, he saw beautiful birds with long necks and white feathers. They swam across the water gracefully.
He looked at them and felt shy. He thought they would laugh at him too. But something inside told him to go near.
As he stepped into the water, he saw his reflection.
He blinked.
No longer was he gray and awkward. His feathers were white and smooth. His neck was long, his wings strong. He had grown into a swan.
The other swans came closer. They didn’t laugh. They didn’t push him away. They swam beside him like he belonged.
He was not an ugly duckling.
He never was.
He had only been waiting for his time to shine.
From that day, the swan lived happily on the pond, with others who welcomed him with joy.
He never forgot the hard days. But he was proud of how far he had come.
Moral: People may not understand you today. But that doesn’t mean you are less. Sometimes, we just need time to become who we truly are. Be patient with yourself. You are growing, even when it doesn’t show.
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