A male duck waddled through the forest, looking for a soulmate.
Suddenly, he saw a she-peacock preening her feathers, cozily sitting in some bushes. His heart missed a beat at such a spectacle. He went up to her and muttered:
-Good morning, pretty lady. Would you like to be my soulmate?
To which she answered:
-And where are your feathers? I see only gray in you. Where are your radiant colors? Don’t waste my time, ugly duck, I have more feathers to preen till sunset.
So, off the duck went, crestfallen.
He waddled his way out of the forest, till he finally got to a meadow. He lifted his head towards the sun just to see a she-eagle hover above him. Such a majestic view couldn’t go unnoticed, and our hero was smitten again.
-Hello, pretty lady. Would you like to be my soulmate? – he asked.
-With those short wings, those funny claws and that blunt beak?- she answered. -You wouldn’t be able to keep up with me in mid flight. Could you at least hunt a rabbit or lift a baby deer up in the air?
-No, but I could get you lots of frogs and tadpoles from the lake- he replied.
-Disgusting, simply disgusting- she said and flew away.
So, off the duck went, crestfallen.
He waddled and waddled, till he found a lake, and there he saw a she-duck. He’d never seen anything prettier. The peacock’s and the eagle’s beauties shriveled up before hers. He plucked up courage to say:
-Hello. You’re so pretty. Would you like to be my soulmate?
-That’s a bold way of starting a conversation, don’t you think?- she answered.
-I know, and I don’t have colorful feathers, nor can I soar through the air. But I can say quack quack.- he replied. And he proceeded to show his talent.
This bemused the she-duck, who found the duck rather handsome, in spite of his monochromatic feathers. Her smile encouraged him to dive into the lake, and emerge with frogs and tadpoles.
-My favorite food- he said.
-Mine too, actually.- she replied, looking attentively at him.
-Do you think you could be my soulmate now?- he insisted.
-I’m not sure. You tell me.- she answered.- Why do you think I would be your perfect soulmate?
-Because you’re really pretty, and you liked my quack quack.- he said, quack quacking even more. And you don’t need colorful feathers nor tender rabbit meat nor great heights to be happy. You’re a simple duck, just like me.
-Indeed I am.- she said. – You’re a convincing duck.- And then and there, she became the duck’s soulmate.
………..
