The Ducklings Who Got Lost in the Fog

By the river, there lived a very close family of ducklings: Tico, the big brother, with bright yellow feathers; and his three little siblings, with soft golden down.

One day, while they were playing near the water, a thick grey fog began to cover everything. Within minutes, they couldn't see anything beyond the tip of their beaks.

"Little brothers and sisters, don't wander off!" shouted Tico, but his voice got lost in the white fog. When he could finally see around him, his three little siblings had disappeared!

Tico felt scared, but he remembered something important: near the river you could always hear the same sound, a soft "glug-glug-glug" of the water running between the stones.

"If I follow the sound of the river, I'll find the way," thought Tico. He closed his little eyes, listened carefully, and began to walk slowly, guiding himself only by the glug-glug-glug of the water.

Little by little, he heard another sound: a quiet, frightened peep. It was his littlest brother, trembling beside a rock! Tico hugged him with his yellow wings and said, "Don't be afraid, let's follow the sound of the river together."

The two little siblings, holding on to each other's wing, followed the glug-glug-glug of the water. Very soon they found the other two siblings, huddled together under a big leaf, waiting with hope.

"Tico found us!" the ducklings peeped happily. Together, following the sound of the river, they all walked in a line, holding onto each other's feet, until the fog began to lift.

When they finally made it home, Mama Duck was waiting with her wings open wide. "Tico, you were very brave not to give up," she said proudly. "And you were all very smart to stay together and trust your brother."

From that day on, whenever something frightened them, the ducklings would hold each other's feet and remember: together, listening calmly, you can always find your way home.