The countryside is really beautiful. It's summer! Wheat is golden and oats are green. Hay was stacked on green pastures, and storks were walking with its long, red legs, purring in Egyptian. (Note: Because according to Danish folklore, storks flew from Egypt.) It was a language it learned from its mom. There are some large forests around the fields and pastures, and there are some deep ponds in the forests. Indeed, the countryside is very beautiful, the sun is shining on an old-fashioned house, and there are several deep streams flowing around it. From the corner of the wall all the way to the water, it was covered with large leaves of burdock. The largest leaves grow so tall that a small child can literally stand straight underneath. Like in the densest forest, it is desolate. There was a female duck sitting in the nest, and she had to hatch several of her ducklings. But by this time she was exhausted. Few guests came to see her. Other ducks would like to swim around in the stream than run under burdock to chat with her.
Finally, the duck eggs broke apart one by one. "Boom! sound! Eggshells rang out. All the egg yolks are now small animals. They stick out their little heads.
"Gah! Ga! The hen duck said. They followed with a loud cry. They looked around under the green leaves. Mom told them to look as far as they could, because green is good for their eyes.
"This world is big enough!" These young little ones said. Indeed, their present heaven and earth were very different than when they were in the eggshell.
"You think this is the whole world!" Mom said. "This place stretches to the other side of the garden, all the way to the priest's field, and it is far away!" I haven't even been there myself! I guess you're all here, right? "She stood up." No, I haven't given birth to you yet! The big egg was still lying motionless. How long does it have to lie down? I'm really annoyed. So she sat down again.
"Well, what's the situation?" An old duck who had come to visit her asked.
"This egg took a long time!" The sitting hen said. "It doesn't crack. Please look at something else. They are some of the most endearing ducklings! All like their dad – this bad thing never came to see me once! ”
"Let me see this old unripped egg," said the elderly guest, "and believe me, it is the egg of a spitting chicken." Once I was also deceived, you know, those little guys don't know how much trouble and distress I have given me, because they don't dare to go into the water. There was simply no way I could tell them to give it a try in the water. I said good to say evil, it is useless! - Let me see this egg. ah! It's a spitting chicken's egg! Let him lie down, and you can tell the other kids to go swimming. ”
"I'll sit on it for a little longer," said mother duck, "I've been sitting on it for so long, it doesn't matter if I sit on it for another week." "Then please poop," said the old duck. So she quit.
Finally the big egg cracked. "Boom! sound! The newborn little guy screamed and crawled outside. He was big and ugly. Mother Duck glanced at him. "This little duckling is too big to be afraid of men," she said, "and none of the others are like him; but he is not at all like a little spitting chicken!" Well, let's give it a try right away. He got into the water, and I kicked him into the water. ”
The weather the next day was sunny and beautiful. The sun shines on the green burdock. The mother duck took all her children to the creek. ordinary! She jumped into the water. "Yikes! wail! She cried, and the little ducks jumped down one by one. The water flooded over their heads, but they immediately popped up again and swam very beautifully. Their calves are paddled flexibly. They were all in the water, and even the ugly gray little guy was swimming with them.
Well, he's not a spitting, she said, you see how flexibly his legs are, how steady he floats! He's my biological child! If you look at him closely, he's pretty pretty. Ga! Ga! Come with me, and I will take you into the world and introduce you to the chicken farm. But you have to cling to Me, lest anyone else step on you. You have to watch out for cats!" ”
So they came to the chicken farm. There was a terrible noise in the field, because two families were fighting for an eel's head, and the cat snatched it away.
"You see, the world is like this!" Mother Duck said. Her mouth was dripping with saliva because she wanted to eat that eel head too. "Use your legs now!" She said. "You bring out your spirits. If you see an old hen there, you have to keep your head down, because she is the most prestigious person here. She had Spanish ancestry—because she was very fat. You see, she has a red strip of cloth on her leg. It was a very remarkable thing, and the greatest glory a duck could have received: it was of great significance, that people did not want to lose her, and that animals and men had to know her. Pick yourself up – don't shrink your legs in. A well-bred duck always has its legs out, like Dad and Mom. Well, put your head down and say, 'Gah!' ”
They did. The other ducks stood by and watched, while saying in a rather loud voice:
"Voila! Now there are a bunch of guests looking for something to eat, as if we haven't had enough of us! bah! Look at that little duckling's ugly face! We can't get used to it! ”
Immediately a duck flew over and pecked at his neck.
"Please leave him alone," said Mom, "and he doesn't hurt anyone!" ”
"Yes, but he is too big and too special," said the duck that pecked him, "so he must be beaten!" ”
"The children of that hen are all beautiful," said the hen with a red cloth on her leg, "and they are all beautiful, with only one exception." It's a shame. I hope to incubate him again. ”
"That can't be, ma'am," replied Mother Duck, "he's not good-looking, but he has a very good temper." He swims no worse than others—I can say that he swims better than others. I think he'll slowly grow pretty, or in due course, he might shrink a little bit. He had been lying in the egg for too long, so his appearance was a little unnatural. She said, pecking at his neck at the same time, and straightening his feathers. Besides, he's a male duck," she said, "so it doesn't matter much." I think his body is very strong, and he will always find a way out on his own in the future. ”
"The other ducklings are very cute," said the old hen, "you are not welcome here." If you find an eel head, please give it to me. ”
They're here now, just like they're in their own homes.
But the little duckling that crawled out of the eggshell was so ugly, beaten everywhere, squeezed out, ridiculed, not only in the ducks, but also in the chickens.
"He's really thick and big!" Everybody says. There was a male spitting chicken that was born with a distance on his feet, so he thought he was an emperor. He blew himself like a sailboat full of wind, and came to him menacingly, staring at a pair of large eyes, and his face rose red. This poor duckling didn't know where to stand or where to go. He felt very sad because he looked so ugly and became a laughing object for all the chickens and ducks.
This was the case on the first day. It got worse and worse every day. Everyone was going to drive away the poor duckling; even his own brothers and sisters were angry with him. They always say, "You ugly monster, I hope the cat will catch you!" So my mother said, "I want you to go farther!" "The ducks pecked at him. The chicken beat him, and the maid who fed the chickens and ducks kicked him with her foot.
So he flew over the fence and fled; the birds of the bush flew into the air in panic as soon as they saw him. "It's because I'm so ugly!" Duckling thought. So he closed his eyes and kept running. In one breath, he ran into a swamp inhabited by wild ducks. He lay here all night because he was too tired and too depressed.
At dawn, the wild ducks flew up. They looked at the new friend.
"Who are you?" They asked. The duckling turned to this side and then to that side, and tried to salute everyone respectfully.
"You're ugly," said the wild ducks, "but as long as you don't marry any of the ducks of our clan, it doesn't matter to us much." "Poor little thing! He had no idea of getting married; he had only hoped that he would be allowed to lie in the reeds and drink some water from the swamp.
He lay there for two whole days. Then two geese—strictly speaking, two male geese, because they were two males—flew in. They hadn't been out of their mother's eggshell for long, so they were very naughty.
"Listen, friend," they said, "you're so ugly and lovely that even I can't help but like you." Would you be a migratory bird and fly away with us? There is also a swampy area close to here, where there are several lively and cute geese. They're all young ladies and they're all going to say, 'Gah! You're so ugly, you can try your luck with them!' ”
sound! syllable! There was a noise in the sky. The two male geese fell into the reeds, died, and stained the water bright red. "Boom! syllable! "There was another bang. The whole flock of geese flew up from the reeds, and then another burst of gunfire rang out. It turned out that someone was hunting on a large scale. Hunters were lurking around the swamp, and a few even sat on branches that stretched out over the reeds. Blue smoke enveloped the black trees like clouds, slowly drifting off into the distance on the surface of the water. At this time, the hounds were all ordinary running in the mud, and the cordyceps and reeds fell to both sides. What a terrible thing for poor duckling! He dropped his head and hid it in his wings. At this moment, however, a terrifying large hunting dog stood closely beside the duckling. Its tongue sticks out of its mouth very long, and its eyes glow ugly and terrible. It pressed its nose up to the duckling's body, revealing its pointed teeth, but — ordinary! ordinary! It ran away and didn't take him away.
"Ah, thank god!" The duckling sighed, "I'm so ugly that even the hounds don't bite me!" ”
He lay down quietly. Gunshots were still ringing in the reeds, and bullets shot out one after another.
When it was almost dark, the surrounding area was quiet. But the poor duckling did not dare to stand up. He waited for hours before he dared to look around, so he hurried out of the swamp, running desperately, toward the fields, toward the pastures. At this time, a fierce wind blew, and it was very difficult for him to run.
When it was dark, he came to a simple farmhouse. It's so broken that it doesn't even know which side to pour to — and therefore it doesn't fall. The wind howled so loudly around the duckling that he had to sit down facing it. The more it blows, the more fierce it gets. So he saw that one of the hinges on the door had been loosened, and the door was crooked, and he could enter the house through the gap, and he went in.
There was an old woman living in the house with her cat and a hen. She called the cat "Little Son." He can arch his back high and make Mimi's cry; he can burst into flames, but if he does, you have to touch his hair. The hen's legs are short and small, so she is called "short-legged chicken". The eggs she laid were good, so the old woman loved her as if she were her own biological child.
The next morning, the duckling of unknown origin was immediately noticed. The cat began to bark, and the hen cackled.
"What's going on here?" The old woman said, looking around at the same time. But her eyes were a little flowery, so she thought the duckling was a fat duck, and she went the wrong way, so she came here. "What a rare piece of luck!" She said, "Now I can have duck eggs." I just hope he's not a male duck! We've got to figure it out! ”
Thus the duckling was tested here for three weeks, but he did not give birth to any eggs. The cat was the gentleman of the house, and the hen was the wife of the house, so as soon as they opened their mouths, they said, "We and the world!" "Because they think they're half the world, and they're still the best half." Duckling felt that he could have a different opinion, but his attitude, the hen could not stand.
"Can you lay eggs?" she asked.
No! ”
"Then please don't give an opinion."
So the tom cat said, "Can you arch your back and make Mimi's cry and spark?" ”
"Can't!"
"Well, when there are sane people speaking, you have no need to express your opinion!"
Duckling sat in a corner and was in a very bad mood. Then he remembered the fresh air and the sunlight. He felt a strange longing: he wanted to swim in the water. In the end, he couldn't help it, so he had to tell the hen what was on his mind.
"What are you thinking?" The hen asked. "You don't have anything to do, that's why you have these weird thoughts." All you have to do is lay a few eggs, or Mimi barks a few times, and then your weird thoughts will be gone. ”
"But how hard it is to swim in the water!" Duckling said. "Let the water flood your head and drill into the bottom of the water, how painful it is!"
"Yes, that must be painful!" The hen said, "You're going crazy." Ask the cat —he's the smartest of all the friends I know—and ask him if he likes to swim in the water, or get into it. I won't talk about myself first. Ask your master— the old woman — for there is no one smarter in the world! Do you think she wants to go for a swim and let the water flood over her head? ”
"You don't know me," duckling said.
"We don't know you? So who knows you? You are no smarter than the cat and the hostess—I won't mention myself. Boy, don't you think you're not great! You are now receiving these cares and you should thank God. You're in a warm room now, have some friends, and you can learn a lot from them, can't you? But you're a piece of crap, and it's not a pleasure to be with you. You can believe me, I said these unpleasant things to you, just to help you. Only then will you know who your true friends are! Please pay attention to learning to lay eggs, or Mimi barking, or bursting out sparks! ”
"I think I'd better go out into the wider world," Duckling said.
"Well, there you go!" The hen said.
So the duckling left. He was swimming in the water for a moment, and he was in the water for a moment; but, because of his ugly appearance, all the animals looked no further. Autumn has arrived. The leaves in the woods turned yellow and brown. The wind picked them up and carried them into the air to fly, and it was cold in the air. The clouds carried hail and snowflakes heavily, hanging low. The crow stood on the fence, frozen and shouted, "Whoa! wail! "Yes, you just have to think about it and you'll feel cold. This poor duckling really didn't have a comfortable time.
One night, while the sun was setting beautifully, there was a flock of beautiful big birds flying out of the bushes, and the little ducklings had never seen anything so beautiful. They were shiny white and had long, soft necks. This is the swan. They let out a strange cry, spread their beautiful long wings, and flew from the cold to the warm country, to the ice-free lake.
They flew so high—so high—that the ugly duckling couldn't help but feel an indescribable excitement. He kept spinning like a wheel on the water, and at the same time, stretching his neck high toward them, making a strange cry that made even himself frightened. yes! He could never forget these beautiful birds, these happy birds. When he couldn't see them, he sank to the bottom of the water; but when he came to the surface of the water again, he felt very empty. He didn't know the names of the birds or where they were going. But he loved them as if he had never loved anything. He wasn't jealous of them. How could he dream of being as beautiful as they were? As long as the other ducks allowed him to live with them, he was satisfied—poor ugly things.
Winter gets very cold, very cold! The ducklings had to swim around the water to keep the surface from freezing completely into ice. But the small area he swam in was shrinking from night to night. The water was so frozen that one could hear the cracking of the ice. The duckling had to swim non-stop with one of his legs, so that the water would not be completely enclosed by ice. Finally, he passed out, lying motionless, stuck with the ice cubes.
Early in the morning, a farmer passed by. He saw the little duckling, so he went over and broke the ice with his clogs, and then carried him back and gave it to his woman. Only then did he gradually regain consciousness.
The children wanted to play with him, but the ducklings thought they wanted to hurt him. As soon as he was frightened, he jumped into the milk tray and splashed the milk all over the house. The woman screamed and clapped her hands. In this way, the duckling flew into the butter basin, then into the flour bucket, and finally climbed out. At this time, he looks good! The woman screamed and took the fire tongs to hit him. The children huddled together and tried to catch the duckling. They laughed and shouted again! Fortunately, the gate is open. He burrowed into the newly snow in the bushes. He lay there, almost as if he had fainted.
If we only talk about the hardships and disasters he suffered in this harsh winter, then this story would be too tragic. As the sun began to shine warmly again, he was lying in the reeds of the swamp. The lark began to sing – it was a beautiful spring.
Suddenly he raised his wings: the flapping of the wings was much more powerful than before, and they immediately lifted him up and flew away. Unconsciously, he had flown into a large garden. Here the apple trees are blossoming; the lilacs are fragrant, and its long, green branches hang down to the meandering stream. Ah, it's beautiful, full of spring! Three beautiful white swans swam from the shade of the trees all the way to him. They floated lightly on the water, their feathers making a fluttering sound. The duckling recognized these beautiful animals, and felt an indescribable sadness in his heart.
"I'm going to fly to them, to these noble birds!" But they would kill me, because I was so ugly that I dared to approach them. But that doesn't matter! It is better to be killed by them than to be bitten by ducks, pecked by chickens, kicked by the maid who guards the chicken farm, and suffered in winter! "So he flew into the water and swam toward these beautiful swans: the animals saw him and immediately raised their feathers and swam toward him." Please kill me!" The poor animal said. He lowered his head into the water, just waiting to die. But what did he see on this clear water? He saw his own reflection. But it was no longer a clumsy, dark gray, ugly and nasty duck, but a swan!
As long as you've ever been in a swan egg, it doesn't matter if you were born in a duck farm.
He is now very pleased with the misfortunes and sufferings he has suffered in the past. He now clearly recognized that happiness and beauty were beckoning to him. Many giant swans swam around him and kissed him with their mouths.
There were a few small children in the garden. They threw many slices of bread and grains of wheat into the water. The youngest child cried out:
"Look at that new swan!" The other children also shouted gleefully: "Yes, a new swan has come!" So they clapped their hands, danced, and ran to their dad and mom. They tossed more bread and pastries into the water, and everyone said, "This new one is the most beautiful!" So young, so good-looking! The old swans couldn't help but bow their heads in front of him.
He felt very embarrassed. He hid his head in his wings and didn't know what to do. He felt so happy, but he was not proud at all, because a good heart would never be proud. He wondered how others had been persecuted and ridiculed, and now he was the most beautiful bird he had heard. Lilacs hung branches into the water in front of him. The sun was warm and pleasant. He flapped his wings, straightened his slender neck, and made a happy sound from within:
"When I was an ugly duckling, I never dreamed there would be so much happiness!"
Images are from the Internet and should be deleted if there is a link to infringement.