The ugly duckling

It is a beautiful summer day. The sun shines warmly on an old house near a river. Behind the house a mother duck is sitting on ten eggs. "Tchick." One by one all the eggs break open.

All except one. This one is the biggest egg of all.

Mother duck sits and sits on the big egg. At last it breaks open, "Tchick, tchick!"

Out jumps the last baby duck. It looks big and strong. It is grey and ugly.

The next day mother duck takes all her little ducks to the river. She jumps into it. All her baby ducks jump in. The big ugly duckling jumps in too.

They all swim and play together. The ugly duckling swims better than all the other ducklings.

- Quack, quack! Come with me to the farm yard! - says mother duck to her baby ducks and they all follow her there.

The farm yard is very noisy. The poor duckling is so unhappy there. The hens peck him, the rooster flies at him, the ducks bite him, the farmer kicks him.

At last one day he runs away. He comes to a river. He sees many beautiful big birds swimming there. Their feathers are so white, their necks so long, their wings so pretty. The little duckling looks and looks at them. He wants to be with them. He wants to stay and watch them. He knows they are swans. Oh, how he wants to be beautiful like them.

Now it is winter. Everything is white with snow. The river is covered with ice. The ugly duckling is very cold and unhappy.

Spring comes once again. The sun shines warmly. Everything is fresh and green.

One morning the ugly duckling sees the beautiful swans again. He knows them. He wants so much to swim with them in the river. But he is afraid of them. He wants to die. So he runs into the river. He looks into the water. There in the water he sees a beautiful swan. It is he! He is no more an ugly duckling. He is a beautiful white swan.

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Parent Category: Magazine

Category: Story (english)

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There once was a shepherd boy who was bored as he sat on the hillside watching the village sheep. To amuse himself he took a great breath and sang out, "Wolf! Wolf! The Wolf is chasing the sheep!"

The villagers came running up the hill to help the boy drive the wolf away. But when they arrived at the top of the hill, they found no wolf. The boy laughed at the sight of their angry faces.

"Don't cry 'wolf', shepherd boy," said the villagers, "when there's no wolf!" They went grumbling back down the hill.

Later, the boy sang out again, "Wolf! Wolf! The wolf is chasing the sheep!" To his naughty delight, he watched the villagers run up the hill to help him drive the wolf away.

When the villagers saw no wolf they sternly said, "Save your frightened song for when there is really something wrong! Don't cry 'wolf' when there is NO wolf!"

But the boy just grinned and watched them go grumbling down the hill once more.

Later, he saw a REAL wolf prowling about his flock. Alarmed, he leaped to his feet and sang out as loudly as he could, "Wolf! Wolf!"

But the villagers thought he was trying to fool them again, and so they didn't come.

At sunset, everyone wondered why the shepherd boy hadn't returned to the village with their sheep. They went up the hill to find the boy. They found him weeping.

"There really was a wolf here! The flock has scattered! I cried out, "Wolf!" Why didn't you come?"

An old man tried to comfort the boy as they walked back to the village.

"We'll help you look for the lost sheep in the morning," he said, putting his arm around the youth, "Nobody believes a liar...even when he is telling the truth!"

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Parent Category: Magazine

Category: Story (english)

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Parent Category: Magazine

Category: Story (english)

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Once there lived a poor woodcutter. He used to cut trees in the woods. One day he was cutting wood on the bank of a river. His axe fell down into the river. The river was deep. He could not take his axe out. He sat on the bank and began to weep.

Mercury, the god of water appeared. He asked the reason of his weeping. The woodcutter told the whole story. Mercury dived into the water and brought a golden axe. The woodcutter refused to take it. Mercury again dived and brought a silver axe. The woodcutter did not take it either. Then he brought an iron axe. The woodcutter took it gladly. Mercury was much pleased. He rewarded the woodcutter with the other two axes.

Moral: Honesty is the best policy.

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Parent Category: Magazine

Category: Story (english)

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