Re: OT - BH

On Mon, 17 Apr 2006 11:13:45 +0100, Penny <spam@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

I do love to see recently hatched ducklings on the water. They skitter
about at such speed and are so fluffy they look out-of-focus :)

When I was living in Taunton I watched a family of ducks on the river.
I in turn was apparently being watched by a group of people on the
opposite bank because of my rapt attention to what was going on there.

One duckling was struggling down the rockery on the river bank while
the other twelve were preparing for an outing across the river with
mum. I couldn't have reached the straggler, otherwise I would have
just given it a shove to get it into the water. All I could do was
will it to get down there and catch up with its family. Eventually it
reached the water, by which time the whole family had reached the
opposite bank, and - I dunno, maybe ducks _can_ count - possibly
realised they were missing one, had started a convoy back across to
meet it as it made its way across the river to reach them. I was
almost singing the background music by that time, probably something
by Tchaikovsky, it was such a sweet moment, only about six inches to
go whoosh herring gull out of nowhere and airborne duckling.

I of course was doubled up in agonised shock and the watchers on the
other bank were laughing at me the rotten sods.

The kids at school keep asking me to tell that story again.

lff
.

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