Surrounded by dense forests was a charming farm. It was a warm summer day. The meadows were luscious green, and the wheat fields were golden in colour, glowing in the sunlight. On the edge of the farm was a pool with bushes surrounding it.

On the bushes, Mother Duck was sitting on top of her eggs in her nest. After waiting many days, the eggs began to hatch. First, one egg hatched. And then another. Finally, all but one egg had hatched.

“Quack! Quack! Have all your eggs, hatched?” asked an old duck who had come to visit her.

“Quack! Quack! Not yet! All my eggs have hatched except for the biggest one of them all. When will this egg hatch, I wonder. I am growing tired of sitting here all day,” said Mother Duck. “The weather is amazing, and I can’t wait to teach my babies to swim.”

“This egg is quite large. Are you sure it is yours? Someone else’s egg might have rolled into your nest by mistake. I have a feeling it is a turkey’s egg. A turkey cannot swim. Forget this egg and teach your other ducklings to swim,” suggested the old duck.

“Oh, no! I couldn’t do that. This egg is my baby, and I can’t abandon my baby. I will wait until he or she comes out,” replied Mother Duck.

Eventually, the last egg hatched, and the duckling was large and ugly.

The Mother Duck thought, “I will name him Charlie. He looks different compared to the other ducklings. All the other ducklings are tiny and pretty. Perhaps it is a turkey like the old duck suggested.”

The next day Mother Duck gathered her ducklings and said, “Quack! Quack! The weather is beautiful today. Let us all go for a swim.”

When they went into the pond, all the ducklings began to swim, even Charlie. “Charlie is not a turkey, after all. He is the best swimmer among my ducklings. He might look different compared to the others, but he is my baby,” thought Mother Duck.

Mother Duck began teaching her ducklings. She said, “Beware of the cat on the farm, for he eats ducklings. Always stay close to me.”

She took her ducklings to the yard, where all the other ducks were there.

Looking at Charlie, the ducks said, “You are ugly. Go away.”

Charlie was very sad. Everyone, including his brothers and sisters, made fun of him. “Go away from here. How I wish the cat would eat you,” said one of his brothers.

After a few days, tired and unhappy, Charlie went away from the farm.

He walked on and on until he came across another pond. Many wild ducks were swimming in the pond.

“What are you?” asked one of the ducks.

“I am a duckling,” said Charlie.

“No, you are not. You are so ugly. You cannot be a duck,” replied the ducks. “Now, go away.”

“Everyone hates me. What do I do?” lamented Charlie.

He continued walking and came across a gaggle of geese. “You seem sad. Why don’t you join us? We are flying south to escape the winter. We can carry you with us.”

Charlie was happy at finally having found some friends. Before they could start, a hunter fired shots at them, and one of the geese fell dead. Hearing this, all the other geese flew away, leaving Charlie shivering in fright.

A dog jumped from one of the bushes but barely noticed Charlie lying on the ground. “I am thankful I am ugly. The dog won’t even bite me,” thought Charlie.

Charlie found a pond and lived alone, swimming all day. Summer turned to autumn, and autumn turned to winter. The pond was frozen, and Charlie was trembling in the cold. He had nowhere to go and no food to eat.

A kind farmer was passing by the pond when he noticed the freezing Charlie.

“You poor thing,” said the farmer. “You are freezing in the cold. I will take you home with me where you can pass the winter.”

He took Charlie home and kept him safe. The farmer and his wife took care of Charlie. Soon the snow melted, and Charlie grew older. The farmer let out Charlie, who was glad to be in the open.

When he spread his wings, he realised he could fly. Flying, he reached a lake in the middle of a beautiful garden.

“This garden is so beautiful. The trees are fresh, the grass is green, and there are flowers everywhere. I will stay in this lake,” thought Charlie.

H*e saw a group of swans swimming in the lake and got nervous. He thought, “Will these swans hurt me and make fun of me? But what choice do I have?”

As he approached the lake, one of the swans said, “Hello! Are you new here?” They all had a curious expression on their face but also looked friendly.

Pleased at the kind looks given by the swans, Charlie replied, “Yes.”

“Why don’t you join us?” asked one of the swans.

“Are you asking me to be your friend? But everyone hated and made fun of me because I am an ugly duckling,” said Charlie.

“You are not a duckling. You are a swan and a handsome one at that,” replied the swans.

The duckling bent his head and, to his astonishment, saw his reflection. “I am handsome,” said the duckling-swan, happily joining his new friends. “No wonder I was different. I hatched from a swan’s egg but had by mistake mixed with the ducks.”

Just then, a group of children came to the garden. They threw bread and cake at the swans, who happily ate the bread and cakes.

“Look, mummy,” said one of the children. “Look how beautiful the swans are.”

“Yes, they are,” replied the mother.

“We even have a new swan today,” said the other child. “He is the most beautiful of them all.”

The duckling-Swan was happy. Never before had he been praised so much. He felt neither pride nor arrogance that he was handsome and graceful.

Instead, he felt grateful and appreciated his good fortune. He happily lived with his new friends. Having suffered so much grief and pain, he made sure never to be cruel to anyone else.

Author’s Note:

One of Hans Christian Andersen’s famous tales, “The ugly duckling”, resonates with all adults and children alike. This story is an entirely original work of Andersen, and some say there are some autobiographical elements attached to the story.

This tale teaches kids not to be cruel and never to judge anyone by outward appearance.