It was summer! The sun was high in the sky, making everything bright and cheerful. Ava loved summer! The days were long and filled with sunshine. It felt like the sun was always smiling. Ava had moved from San Antonio to a farm with her family. They wanted to be closer to nature. Ava loved the farm. There was so much space to play. Ava could use her superpower, Mind reading, to understand all the animals.
There was a peaceful stream that ran through the farm and a big lake where Ava could swim. Ava loved to watch the storks with their long, graceful legs. They walked so carefully! Ava tried to walk like them. Ava was very intelligent and learned quickly.
One day, Ava was playing with the ducklings in the lake. She saw a duck sitting on a nest of eggs. It was a magical moment! Ava watched as the eggs started to crack and little ducklings hatched. But one egg, the biggest of all, didn't hatch. The duck seemed worried, but she kept sitting on the egg.
A few days later, Ava returned to the lake. The duck was gone, but the large egg had cracked. There was a new baby duckling with a different beak, different colored feathers, and a different way of walking. The duckling looked sad.
Ava was good at making friends with animals. She went to talk to the strange duckling. "Why are you sad? There's a whole farm and a beautiful garden to explore!" The duckling replied, "I'm sad because I'm different from my brothers and sisters. All the other ducks in the lake laugh at me, and it makes me feel bad."
"Don't worry," Ava said. "I like you. I'll be back tomorrow to play." Ava told the duckling about her secret hiding place, the Zoo. "It's a safe place to play."
The next day, Ava went back to the lake, but the duckling was gone. The duckling had been so sad that he decided to leave and try to find other friends. But it didn't work. Everywhere he went, the other ducks made fun of him.
It was a hard journey for the duckling. The seasons changed. He had to move because he wasn't welcome anywhere. He only felt happy in nature.
Ava played by the lake every day. She loved to play with the dogs, which were her favorite animals. But she never saw her friend, the duckling.
Spring arrived. The duckling loved spring, just like Ava loved summer. After a long and difficult journey, he found himself near the lake where he was born. He walked up to the water's edge, but he was afraid that his brothers and sisters would laugh at him. But when he looked in the water, it was like a mirror! He was no longer an ugly duckling; he was a beautiful swan! That's why everyone thought he was so strange!
That day, Ava went to play in the water. She recognized her friend. It was such a happy reunion! Ava was amazed at her friend, now a swan. She was very intelligent and learned quickly. They played together happily.
Ava and the swan learned that being strange wasn't bad. It was just being who you are. Being strange is being different, and everyone is different! And isn't being different just being who we are?
