The Ugly Duckling with Amelia

It was summer! Summer had finally arrived, and Amelia loved summer! The sky was bright blue, and the sun shone so brightly that it seemed like it was always smiling! Everything around Amelia seemed cheerful and colorful.

Just a few weeks before, Amelia’s family had moved from their house in Jacksonville to a nearby farm. Her parents wanted to be closer to nature, and Amelia loved the move! It was like a huge playground where she could play freely, especially with her superpower: Making plants grow instantly! Amelia could wave her hand over a tiny seed, and in a flash, a beautiful flower would bloom!

There was a beautiful, peaceful stream on the farm and a lake where Amelia could swim! The water was so clear and blue, and the trees around the lake looked like green giants! Amelia loved to play in the water and watch the ducks swim around. She could see their yellow beaks bobbing above the water, and their little webbed feet paddling. There were many animals on the farm, but Amelia was always fascinated by the storks. Their long legs were so graceful! They walked so gently and slowly! Amelia tried to imitate their walk, moving her long legs in a slow, careful way, imagining she was a stork flying high above the farm.

One sunny afternoon, Amelia was playing with the ducklings in the lake. They were so cute! They had tiny yellow feathers and wobbled around in a funny way. Suddenly, Amelia saw a duck sitting on a nest of eggs! She watched with excitement as the eggs started to crack and little ducklings hatched! The little ducklings were so cute! Amelia smiled! But then, she noticed that one egg, the largest of all, hadn’t hatched yet. The duck seemed worried and kept sitting on it.

Days later, Amelia returned to the lake. The duck was gone! Amelia was sad. She went closer to the nest and saw that the large egg had finally cracked. Among the ducklings, there was another baby, bigger, with different colored feathers, a different beak, and a different manner. It looked sad.

Amelia loved animals and easily made friends with them! She went to talk to the strange duckling, “Why are you sad, little one? There’s a whole farm and a beautiful garden to explore!”

The duckling looked at her with big, sad eyes. “I’m sad because I’m different from my siblings. I don’t feel good about it. All the other ducks in the lake laugh at me because I’m different and I feel so bad about it.”

“Oh, don’t worry!” said Amelia, “I like you! We would love to have you as a friend! We can play together. I’ll be back tomorrow and we can play!” Amelia then told the duckling about her hiding place, the Magic garden. It was a secret place where she could grow flowers and plants instantly, and she thought it would be a safe and fun place to play.

The next day, Amelia went back to the lake, but the duckling was gone! Amelia was sad. She found the mother duck, “Where’s the little duckling?”

“He was so sad that he decided to leave and try to find other friends,” explained the mother duck. “He tried to make friends with the other ducks in the lake, but they all made fun of him, and he felt so bad about it.”

Amelia knew the little duckling would be sad, but she hadn’t realized how much! She tried to find the duckling, but he was nowhere to be seen!