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Dmitry Mamin-Sibiryak
The first autumn cold, from which the grass turned yellow, caused all the birds to be very alarmed. Everyone began to prepare for the long journey, and everyone had such a serious, preoccupied look. Yes, it is not easy to fly over a space of several thousand miles ... How many poor birds will be exhausted along the way, how many will die from various accidents - in general, there was something to seriously think about.
serious big bird, like swans, geese and ducks, she was going on the road with an important look, realizing the difficulty of the upcoming feat; and most of all, little birds made noise, fussed and fussed, like sandpipers, phalaropes, dunlins, blackies, plovers. They had long gathered in flocks and moved from one bank to another over the shallows and swamps with such speed, as if someone had thrown a handful of peas. The little birds had such a big job...
The forest stood dark and silent, because the main singers flew away without waiting for the cold.
- And where is this little thing in a hurry! grumbled the old Drake, who did not like to disturb himself. “We’ll all fly away in due time… I don’t see what there is to worry about.
“You have always been a lazy person, that’s why it’s unpleasant for you to look at other people’s troubles,” explained his wife, the old Duck.
- Was I lazy? You're just being unfair to me, nothing more. Maybe I care more than everyone else, but I just don't show it. There is little sense in this if I run from morning to night along the coast, shouting, disturbing others, annoying everyone.
The duck was generally not entirely happy with her husband, and now she was completely angry.
“Look at the others, you lazybones!” There are our neighbors, geese or swans - it's nice to look at them. They live soul to soul… I suppose a swan or a goose will not leave its nest and is always ahead of the brood. Yes, yes ... And you don’t care about children. You only think about yourself to fill your goiter. Lazybones, in a word... It's even disgusting to look at you!
- Do not grumble, old woman! .. After all, I say nothing, that you have such an unpleasant character. Everyone has their shortcomings ... It's not my fault that the goose is a stupid bird and therefore nurses its brood. In general, my rule is not to interfere in other people's affairs. What for? Let everyone live in their own way.
Drake loved serious reasoning, and somehow it turned out that it was he, Drake, who was always right, always smart and always better than anyone else. The duck had long been accustomed to this, and now she was worried on a very special occasion.
- What kind of father are you? She pounced on her husband. - Fathers take care of children, and you - at least the grass does not grow! ..
Are you talking about the Gray Sheik? What can I do if she can't fly? It's not my fault... They called their crippled daughter Gray Sheika, whose wing was broken back in the spring, when the Fox crept up to the brood and grabbed the duckling. The Old Duck boldly rushed at the enemy and beat off the duckling; but one wing was broken.
“It’s even scary to think how we will leave the Gray Neck here alone,” the Duck repeated with tears. - Everyone will fly away, and she will be left alone. Yes, all alone ... We will fly south, into the warmth, and she, poor thing, will freeze here ... After all, she is our daughter, and how I love her, my Gray Neck! You know, old man, I’ll stay with her to spend the winter here together ...
What about the other children?
“They are healthy, they can manage without me.
Drake always tried to hush up the conversation when it came to Gray Sheik. Of course, he also loved her, but why worry yourself in vain? Well, it will stay, well, it will freeze - it's a pity, of course, but still there's nothing to be done. Finally, you need to think about other children. The wife is always worried, but you need to take things seriously. The drake felt sorry for his wife, but did not fully understand her maternal grief. It would have been better if then the Fox had completely eaten the Gray Neck - after all, she must die in the winter anyway.
The old Duck, in view of the impending parting, treated her crippled daughter with redoubled tenderness. The poor thing did not yet know what separation and loneliness were, and looked at the preparations of others for the journey with the curiosity of a beginner. True, she sometimes became envious that her brothers and sisters were getting ready for departure so cheerfully that they would again be somewhere, far, far away, where there was no winter.
“Are you coming back in the spring?” Gray Sheika asked her mother.
- Yes, yes, we will return, my dear ... And again we will all live together.
To console Gray Sheika, who was beginning to think, her mother told her several similar cases when ducks stayed for the winter. She was personally acquainted with two such couples.
“Somehow, dear, you’ll get through,” the old Duck reassured. “First you get bored, but then you get used to it. If it were possible to transfer you to a warm spring, which does not freeze even in winter, it would be absolutely fine. It’s not far from here… However, what’s the point of saying something in vain, anyway we won’t be able to take you there!
“I will think of you all the time…” repeated poor Gray Sheika. - I will keep thinking: where are you, what are you doing, are you having fun? All the same, it will be, just like I am with you.
The Old Duck needed to muster all his strength so as not to betray his despair. She tried to appear cheerful and cried quietly from everyone. Oh, how sorry she was for dear, poor Gray Sheika ... Now she hardly noticed the other children and paid no attention to them, and it seemed to her that she did not even love them at all.
And how quickly time flew by ... There were already a number of cold matinees, and the birch trees turned yellow from the hoarfrost and the aspens turned red. The water in the river darkened, and the river itself seemed larger, because the banks were bare - the coastal growth was quickly losing foliage. The cold autumn wind tore off the withered leaves and carried them away. The sky was often covered with heavy autumn clouds, dropping a fine autumn rain. In general, there was little good, and that day they were already rushing past the flock migratory bird… The marsh birds were the first to set off, because the swamps were already beginning to freeze. The waterfowl stayed the longest. Gray Sheika was most upset by the flight of the cranes, because they were so plaintively cooing, as if calling her with them. For the first time, her heart sank from some secret foreboding, and for a long time she followed with her eyes the flock of cranes flying away in the sky.
How good they must be, Gray Sheika thought.
Swans, geese and ducks also began to prepare for departure. Separate nests joined in large flocks. Old and seasoned birds taught the young. Every morning these young people made long walks with a cheerful cry to strengthen their wings for a long flight. Clever leaders first trained individual parties, and then all together. There was so much screaming, young fun and joy ... One Gray Neck could not take part in these walks and admired them only from afar. What to do, I had to put up with my fate. But how she swam, how she dived! Water was everything to her.
“We need to go… it’s time!” - said the old leaders. - What can we expect here?
And time flew, flew quickly ... The fateful day also came. The whole flock huddled together live pile on the river. It was early autumn morning, when the water was still covered with thick fog. A duck joint has gone astray from three hundred pieces. Only the quacking of the chief leaders could be heard. The Old Duck did not sleep all night - it was the last night she spent with Gray Sheika.
“Keep close to the bank where the spring runs into the river,” she advised. “The water won’t freeze there all winter.”
Gray Sheika kept aloof from the joint, like a stranger… Yes, everyone was so busy with the general departure that no one paid attention to her. The old Duck's whole heart ached as he looked at poor Gray Neck. Several times she decided to herself that she would stay; but how can you stay when there are other children and you have to fly with the joint? ..
- Well, touch it! - Loudly commanded the main leader, and the flock rose at once up. Gray Sheika remained alone on the river and for a long time followed the flying school with her eyes. At first, everyone flew in one living bunch, and then they stretched out into right triangle and disappeared.
“Am I really alone? thought Gray Neck, bursting into tears. “It would be better if the Fox ate me then ...”
The river, on which the Gray Neck remained, rolled merrily in the mountains covered with dense forest. The place was deaf, and no habitation around. In the mornings, the water near the coast began to freeze, and in the afternoon, thin as glass, the ice melted.
"Is the whole river going to freeze?" thought Gray Sheika with horror.
She was bored alone, and she kept thinking about her brothers and sisters who had flown away. Where are they now? Did you arrive safely? Do they remember her? There was enough time to think about everything. She also knew loneliness. The river was empty, and life was preserved only in the forest, where hazel grouse whistled, squirrels and hares jumped. Once, out of boredom, Gray Sheika climbed into the forest and was terribly frightened when a Hare flew head over heels from under a bush.
“Oh, how you scared me, stupid! - said the Hare, calming down a little. - The soul has gone to the heels ... And why are you hustling around here? After all, all the ducks have long flown away ...
- I can’t fly: the Fox bit my wing when I was still very small ...
- This Fox is for me! .. There is no worse beast. She has been getting to me for a long time ... You beware of her, especially when the river is covered with ice. As soon as it grabs...
They got to know each other. The hare was as defenseless as the Gray Sheika, and saved his life by constant flight.
“If I had wings like a bird, then I wouldn’t be afraid of anyone in the world! .. Although you don’t have wings, you know how to swim, otherwise you’ll take it and dive into the water,” he said. - And I constantly tremble with fear ... I have enemies around me. In the summer you can still hide somewhere, but in the winter you can see everything.
Soon the first snow fell, and the river still did not succumb to the cold. Everything that froze at night, the water broke. The fight was not on the stomach, but to the death. The most dangerous of all were clear, starry nights, when everything calmed down and there were no waves on the river. The river seemed to fall asleep, and the cold tried to bind it with sleepy ice. And so it happened. It was a quiet, quiet starry night. The dark forest stood quietly on the shore, like a guard of giants. The mountains seemed higher, as they do at night. The lofty moon bathed everything with its quivering sparkling light. The mountain river, which was seething during the day, calmed down, and the cold quietly crept up to it, firmly hugged the proud, recalcitrant beauty and covered her as if with mirror glass. Gray Sheika was in despair, because only the very middle of the river did not freeze, where a wide polynya formed. There was no more than fifteen sazhens of free space where one could swim. The chagrin of the Gray Neck reached the last degree when the Fox appeared on the shore - it was the same Fox that broke her wing.
“Ah, old friend, hello!” - Lisa said affectionately, stopping on the shore. - Long time no see ... Congratulations on the winter.
“Go away, please, I don’t want to talk to you at all,” Gray Sheika answered.
- It's for my kindness! You’re good, there’s nothing to say! .. But by the way, they say a lot of superfluous things about me. They themselves will do something, and then they will blame me ... For now - goodbye!
When the Fox was gone, the Hare limped over and said:
- Watch out, Gray Sheika: she will come again. And the Gray Neck also began to be afraid, as the Hare was afraid. The poor woman could not even admire the miracles that were happening around her. Has come already real winter. The ground was covered with a snow-white carpet. Not a single dark spot remained. Even bare birches, alders, willows and mountain ash were covered with hoarfrost, like silvery fluff. And firs have become even more important. They stood, covered with snow, as if they had put on an expensive warm coat. Yes, wonderful, it was good all around; and poor Gray Neck knew only one thing, that this beauty was not for her, and she trembled at the mere thought that her polynya was about to freeze over and she would have nowhere to go. The fox really came a few days later, sat down on the shore and spoke again:
- I missed you, duck ... Come out here; If you don't want it, I'll come to you myself. I'm not shy...
And the Fox began to crawl carefully over the ice to the very hole. Gray Sheika's heart skipped a beat. But the Fox could not get close to the water itself, because the ice there was still very thin. She put her head on her front paws, licked her lips and said:
- What a stupid duck you are ... Get out onto the ice! And yet, goodbye! I'm in a hurry about my business...
The fox began to come every day - to see if the polynya had frozen. The cold weather has taken its toll. From the large polynya there was only one window a sazhen in size. The ice was strong, and the Fox sat on the very edge. Poor Gray Sheika dived into the water with fear, and the Fox sat and laughed angrily at her:
- Nothing, dive, but I'll eat you anyway ... Better come out yourself.
The hare saw from the shore what the Fox was doing, and was indignant with all his hare heart:
- Oh, what a shameless Fox ... What an unfortunate Gray Neck! Fox will eat it...
In all likelihood, the Fox would have eaten the Gray Neck when the polynya would have completely frozen, but it happened differently. The hare saw everything with his own squinting eyes.
It was in the morning. The hare jumped out of his lair to feed and play with other hares. The frost was healthy, and the hares were warming themselves, beating paws on paws. Even though it's cold, it's still fun.
Brothers, beware! someone shouted.
Indeed, the danger was on the nose. At the edge of the forest stood a hunched old hunter, who crept up on skis completely silently and looked out for a hare to shoot.
“Oh, the old woman will have a warm coat,” he thought, choosing the largest hare.
He even took aim with a gun, but the hares noticed him and rushed into the forest like crazy.
- Ah, fools! - the old man got angry. - Here I am already ... They don’t understand, stupid, that an old woman can’t be without a fur coat. She shouldn't be cold... And you won't deceive Akintich, no matter how much you run. Akintich will be more cunning ... And the old woman punished Akintich like: “Look, old man, don’t come without a fur coat!” And you sigh...
The old man set off to look for the hares in the tracks, but the hares scattered through the forest like peas. The old man was rather exhausted, cursed the crafty hares and sat down on the river bank to rest.
- Oh, old woman, old woman, our fur coat ran away! he thought aloud. - Well, I'll rest and go look for another ...
An old man is sitting, grieving, and then, looking, the Fox is crawling along the river - it is crawling like a cat.
- Gee, gee, that's the thing! - the old man rejoiced. - The collar itself crawls to the old woman's fur coat ... Apparently, she wanted to drink, or maybe she even decided to catch fish ...
The fox really crawled up to the very hole in which the Gray Neck swam, and lay down on the ice. The old man's eyes did not see well and because of the fox they did not notice the duck.
“We must shoot her so as not to spoil the collar,” the old man thought, aiming at Lisa. “But this is how the old woman will scold if the collar turns out to be in holes ... Also, your own skill is needed everywhere, but you won’t kill a bug without tackle and a bug.”
The old man took aim for a long time, choosing a place in the future collar. Finally a shot rang out. Through the smoke from the shot, the hunter saw something darting on the ice - and rushed with all his might to the hole; on the way he fell twice, and when he reached the hole, he only shrugged his hands, - the collar was gone, and only the frightened Gray Neck was swimming in the hole.
- That's the thing! The old man gasped, throwing up his hands. - For the first time I see how the Fox turned into a duck. Well, it's a smart beast.
“Grandfather, the Fox ran away,” Gray Sheika explained.
- Did you run away? Here, old woman, and a collar for a fur coat ... What am I going to do now, huh? Well, the sin came out ... And you, stupid, why are you swimming here?
- And I, grandfather, could not fly away with the others. I have one broken wing...
- Oh, stupid, stupid ... But you will freeze here, or the Fox will eat you! Yes…
The old man thought and thought, shook his head and decided:
- And here's what we'll do with you: I'll take you to my granddaughters. Here they will be delighted ... And in the spring you will inflict testicles on the old woman and bring out the ducklings. Is that what I say? Here's something stupid...
The old man got the Gray Neck out of the hole and put it in his bosom. “And I won’t tell the old woman anything,” he thought, heading home. - Let her fur coat with a collar still take a walk in the forest. The main thing is that the granddaughters will be delighted…”
Hares saw it all and laughed merrily. Nothing, the old woman will not freeze on the stove even without a fur coat.
The first autumn cold, from which the grass turned yellow, caused all the birds to be very alarmed. Everyone began to prepare for the long journey, and everyone had such a serious, preoccupied look. Yes, it is not easy to fly over a space of several thousand miles ... How many poor birds will be exhausted along the way, how many will die from various accidents - in general, there was something to seriously think about.
A serious big bird, like swans, geese and ducks, was going on the road with an important air, realizing all the difficulty of the upcoming feat; and most of all, little birds made noise, fussed and fussed, like sandpipers, phalaropes, dunlins, blackies, plovers. They had long gathered in flocks and moved from one bank to another over shallows and swamps with such speed, as if someone had thrown a handful of peas. The little birds had such a big job...
The forest stood dark and silent, because the main singers flew away without waiting for the cold.
- And where is this little thing in a hurry! grumbled the old Drake, who did not like to disturb himself. “We’ll all fly away in due time… I don’t see what there is to worry about.
“You have always been a lazy person, that’s why it’s unpleasant for you to look at other people’s troubles,” explained his wife, the old Duck.
- Was I lazy? You're just being unfair to me, nothing more. Maybe I care more than everyone else, but I just don't show it. There is little sense in this if I run from morning to night along the coast, shouting, disturbing others, annoying everyone.
The duck was generally not entirely happy with her husband, and now she was completely angry.
“Look at the others, you lazybones!” There are our neighbors, geese and swans - it's a pleasure to look at them. They live soul to soul… I suppose a swan or a goose will not leave its nest and is always ahead of the brood. Yes, yes ... And you don’t care about children. You only think about yourself to fill your goiter. Lazybones, in a word... It's even disgusting to look at you!
- Do not grumble, old woman! .. After all, I do not say anything that you have such an unpleasant character. Everyone has their shortcomings ... It's not my fault that the goose is a stupid bird and therefore nurses its brood. In general, my rule is not to interfere in other people's affairs. What for? Let everyone live in their own way.
Drake loved serious reasoning, and somehow it turned out that it was he, Drake, who was always right, always smart and always better than anyone else. The duck had long been accustomed to this, and now she was worried on a very special occasion.
- What kind of father are you? She pounced on her husband. - Fathers take care of children, and you - at least the grass does not grow! ..
Are you talking about the Gray Sheik? What can I do if she can't fly? I am not guilty…
Gray Sheika they called their crippled daughter, whose wing had been broken back in the spring, when the Fox crept up to the brood and grabbed the duckling. The Old Duck boldly rushed at the enemy and beat off the duckling; but one wing was broken.
“It’s even scary to think how we will leave the Gray Neck here alone,” the Duck repeated with tears. - Everyone will fly away, and she will be left alone. Yes, all alone ... We will fly south, into the warmth, and she, poor thing, will freeze here ... After all, she is our daughter, and how I love her, my Gray Neck! You know, old man, I’ll stay with her to spend the winter here together ...
What about the other children?
“They are healthy, they can manage without me.
Drake always tried to hush up the conversation when it came to Gray Sheik. Of course, he also loved her, but why worry yourself in vain? Well, it will stay, well, it will freeze - it's a pity, of course, but still there's nothing to be done. Finally, you need to think about other children. The wife is always worried, but you need to look at things seriously, Drake felt sorry for his wife, but did not fully understand her maternal grief. It would have been better if then the Fox had completely eaten the Gray Neck, because all the same she must die in the winter.
The old Duck, in view of the impending parting, treated her crippled daughter with redoubled tenderness. The poor thing did not yet know what separation and loneliness were, and looked at the preparations of others for the journey with the curiosity of a beginner. True, she sometimes became envious that her brothers and sisters were getting ready for departure so cheerfully that they would again be somewhere, far, far away, where there was no winter.
A little duck named Gray Sheika could not fly with her family to warmer climes because the Fox hurt her wing. When the duck was left alone, she decided to go to the forest out of boredom. There, Gray Neck met the Hare, who warned her that she needed to be wary of the Fox. The fox came every day to the duck and waited until the whole polynya was frozen. One morning, the hunter wanted to shoot the Fox, but he saw a duck in an almost frozen hole. He took it and gave it to his grandchildren.
The main idea of the story of Mamin-Sibiryak
The tale tells that one cannot give up and one must always go to the end despite all life's obstacles.
In autumn, birds were preparing to fly to warm places. The duck and the drake fought constantly. She condemned her husband for being indifferent to their children. He assumed he was doing the right thing. All the quarrels were because of a small wounded duck, with which the Fox had injured its wing in the spring. The mother rushed to save the duck, but the duck no longer had the opportunity to fly.
The old duck was worried because of her, since the Gray Neck could not fly to warmer climes with everyone and had to spend the winter alone in the forest. Before leaving, her mother taught her to keep to the banks of the river, which would not freeze in winter because of the spring that gushed in it. Although she and Gray Sheika were her favorite child, she could not leave the rest of the children in the air.
Left alone, the wounded duck wandered into the forest out of boredom. She met a hare who warned her that the Fox was wandering in the forest in search of prey.
The river in which the Gray Neck lived was increasingly covered with a crust of ice. After some time, a very small gully remained in the river. And then, from the forest, the cheat Fox appeared, exactly the one that crippled the duck. The cunning redhead started a conversation with Gray Sheika, her voice was soft and affectionate. But the duck could not forget the insult and did not even begin to talk with the Fox. The robber, leaving, said that this was not her last visit.
The fox visited the duck every day, watched as the polynya was getting smaller. The hare felt sorry for his girlfriend duck, but he could not change anything.
One morning, the bunnies were having a fun time on the frosty edge. The hunter appeared at the edge of the forest, he wanted to knock out a few hares in order to make a fur coat for his wife. But suddenly he saw Lisa, who went out into again see if the water is completely frozen. The old man fired at the Fox, but missed. He ran to the river, but noticed only a small duck.
The old man thought that the treacherous Fox had turned into a duck and took her to his home. Having brought the duck home, he gave it to his grandchildren, who liked it very much.
Picture or drawing Gray neck
Other retellings for the reader's diary
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Goriot's father is a former pasta manufacturer who rents rooms at Dom Voke. Previously, he paid big money and owned the best rooms in the house. Plus, he dressed well. The mistress of the house, Madame Voke, dreamed of marrying him.
- Summary of Ballet Giselle
The action begins in a tiny village that lives in a calm rhythm. Ordinary people live here naive people. The young rural girl Giselle enjoys the sun, the clear sky, the singing of birds and, more than anything else, the bliss of falling in love
- Summary of Stars in the rain of Krapivin
Stars in the rain - sounds very beautiful and romantic. But there are so many practical people in the world and not at all romantics that sometimes it becomes boring to live, because there are so many interesting things in the world.
- Summary About this Mayakovsky
The first autumn cold, from which the grass turned yellow, caused all the birds to be very alarmed. Everyone began to prepare for the long journey, and everyone had such a serious, preoccupied look. Yes, it is not easy to fly over a space of several thousand miles ... How many poor birds will be exhausted along the way, how many will die from various accidents - in general, there was something to seriously think about.
A serious big bird, like swans, geese and ducks, was going on the road with an important look, realizing all the difficulty of the upcoming feat; and most of all, little birds made noise, fussed and fussed, like sandpipers, phalaropes, dunlins, blackies, plovers. They had long gathered in flocks and moved from one bank to another over the shallows and swamps with such speed, as if someone had thrown a handful of peas. The little birds had such a big job...
The forest stood dark and silent, because the main singers flew away without waiting for the cold.
“Where is this little thing going?” grumbled the old Drake, who did not like to disturb himself. “We’ll all fly away in due time… I don’t understand what there is to worry about.
“You have always been a lazy person, so it’s unpleasant for you to look at other people’s troubles,” explained his wife, the old Duck.
- Was I lazy? You're just being unfair to me, nothing more. Maybe I care more than everyone else, but I just don't show it. There is little sense in this if I run from morning to night along the coast, shouting, disturbing others, annoying everyone.
The duck was generally not entirely happy with her husband, and now she was completely angry:
“Look at the others, you lazybones!” There are our neighbors, geese or swans - it's nice to look at them. They live soul to soul… I suppose a swan or a goose will not leave its nest and is always ahead of the brood. Yes, yes ... And you don’t care about children. You only think about yourself to fill your goiter. Lazybones, in a word... It's even disgusting to look at you!
“Don’t grumble, old woman!.. I don’t say anything, that you have such an unpleasant character. Everyone has their shortcomings ... It's not my fault that the goose is a stupid bird and therefore nurses its brood. In general, my rule is not to interfere in other people's affairs. What for? Let everyone live in their own way.
Drake loved serious reasoning, and somehow it turned out that it was he, Drake, who was always right, always smart and always better than anyone else. The duck had long been accustomed to this, and now she was worried on a very special occasion.
- What kind of father are you? She pounced on her husband. - Fathers take care of children, and you - at least the grass does not grow! ..
Are you talking about the Gray Sheik? What can I do if she can't fly? I am not guilty…
Gray Sheika they called their crippled daughter, whose wing had been broken back in the spring, when the Fox crept up to the brood and grabbed the duckling. The Old Duck boldly rushed at the enemy and beat off the duckling; but one wing was broken.
“It’s even scary to think how we will leave the Gray Neck here alone,” the Duck repeated with tears. Everyone will fly away, and she will be left alone. Yes, all alone ... We will fly south, into the warmth, and she, poor thing, will freeze here ... After all, she is our daughter, and how I love her, my Gray Neck! You know, old man, I’ll stay with her to spend the winter here together ...
What about the other children?
“They are healthy, they can manage without me.
Drake always tried to hush up the conversation when it came to Gray Sheik. Of course, he also loved her, but why worry yourself in vain? Well, it will stay, well, it will freeze—it’s a pity, of course, but still there’s nothing to be done. Finally, you need to think about other children. The wife is always worried, but you need to take things seriously. The drake felt sorry for his wife, but did not fully understand her maternal grief. It would have been better if then the Fox had completely eaten the Gray Neck - after all, she must die in the winter anyway.
The old Duck, in view of the impending parting, treated her crippled daughter with redoubled tenderness. The poor thing did not yet know what separation and loneliness were, and looked at the preparations of others for the journey with the curiosity of a beginner. True, she sometimes became envious that her brothers and sisters were getting ready for departure so cheerfully that they would again be somewhere, far, far away, where there was no winter.
"Are you coming back in the spring?" Gray Sheika asked her mother.
- Yes, yes, we will return, my dear ... And again we will all live together.
To console Gray Sheika, who was beginning to think, her mother told her several similar cases when ducks stayed for the winter. She was personally acquainted with two such couples.
“Somehow, dear, you’ll get through,” the old Duck reassured. “First you get bored, but then you get used to it. If it were possible to transfer you to a warm spring, which does not freeze even in winter, it would be absolutely fine. It’s not far from here… However, what’s the point of saying something in vain, anyway we won’t be able to take you there!
“I will think of you all the time…” repeated poor Gray Sheika. - I will keep thinking: where are you, what are you doing, are you having fun? All the same, it will be, just like I am with you.
The Old Duck needed to muster all his strength so as not to betray his despair. She tried to appear cheerful and cried quietly from everyone. Oh, how sorry she was for dear, poor Gray Sheika ... Now she hardly noticed the other children and paid no attention to them, and it seemed to her that she did not even love them at all.
And how quickly time flew by ... There were already a number of cold matinees, and the birch trees turned yellow from the hoarfrost and the aspens turned red. The water in the river darkened, and the river itself seemed larger, because the banks were bare - the coastal growth was quickly losing foliage. The cold autumn wind tore off the withered leaves and carried them away. The sky was often covered with heavy autumn clouds, dropping a fine autumn rain. In general, there was little good, and for a whole day a flock of migratory birds had already been rushing past ... The marsh birds were the first to move, because the swamps were already beginning to freeze. The waterfowl stayed the longest. Gray Sheika was most upset by the flight of the cranes, because they were so plaintively cooing, as if calling her with them. For the first time, her heart sank from some secret foreboding, and for a long time she followed with her eyes the flock of cranes flying away in the sky.
How good they must be, Gray Sheika thought.
Swans, geese and ducks also began to prepare for departure. Separate nests joined in large flocks. Old and seasoned birds taught the young. Every morning these young people made long walks with a cheerful cry to strengthen their wings for a long flight. Clever leaders first trained individual parties, and then all together. There was so much screaming, young fun and joy ... One Gray Neck could not take part in these walks and admired them only from afar. What to do, I had to put up with my fate. But how she swam, how she dived! Water was everything to her.
“We need to go… it’s time!” the old leaders said. - What can we expect here?
And time flew, flew quickly ... The fateful day also came. The whole flock huddled together in one living heap on the river. It was early autumn morning, when the water was still covered with thick fog. A duck joint has gone astray from three hundred pieces. Only the quacking of the chief leaders could be heard. The Old Duck did not sleep all night - it was the last night she spent with Gray Sheika.
“Keep close to the bank where the spring runs into the river,” she advised. The water won't freeze there all winter...
Gray Sheika kept aloof from the joint, like a stranger… Yes, everyone was so busy with the general departure that no one paid attention to her. The old Duck's whole heart ached as he looked at poor Gray Neck. Several times she decided to herself that she would stay; but how can you stay when there are other children and you have to fly with the joint? ..
- Well, touch! - loudly commanded the main leader, and the flock rose at once up.
Gray Sheika remained alone on the river and for a long time followed the flying school with her eyes. At first, everyone flew in one living bunch, and then they stretched out into a regular triangle and disappeared.
Am I all alone? thought Gray Neck, bursting into tears. - It would be better if the Fox ate me then ...
The river, on which the Gray Neck remained, rolled merrily in the mountains covered with dense forest. The place was deaf, and no habitation around. In the mornings, the water near the coast began to freeze, and in the afternoon, thin as glass, the ice melted.
Will the whole river freeze? thought Gray Sheika with horror.
She was bored alone, and she kept thinking about her brothers and sisters who had flown away. Where are they now? Did you arrive safely? Do they remember her? There was enough time to think about everything. She also knew loneliness. The river was empty, and life was preserved only in the forest, where hazel grouse whistled, squirrels and hares jumped. Once, out of boredom, Gray Sheika climbed into the forest and was terribly frightened when a Hare flew head over heels from under a bush.
“Oh, how you scared me, stupid! said the Hare, calming down a little. - The soul has gone to the heels ... And why are you hustling around here? After all, all the ducks have long flown away ...
- I can’t fly: the Fox bit my wing when I was still very small ...
- This Fox is for me! .. There is no worse beast. She has been getting to me for a long time ... You beware of her, especially when the river is covered with ice. As soon as it grabs...
They got to know each other. The hare was as defenseless as the Gray Sheika, and saved his life by constant flight.
“If I had wings like a bird, it would seem that I wouldn’t be afraid of anyone in the world! .. Although you don’t have wings, you know how to swim, otherwise you’ll take it and dive into the water,” he said. - And I constantly tremble with fear ... I have enemies around me. In the summer you can still hide somewhere, but in the winter you can see everything.
Soon the first snow fell, and the river still did not succumb to the cold. Everything that froze at night, the water broke. The fight was not on the stomach, but to the death. The most dangerous of all were clear, starry nights, when everything calmed down and there were no waves on the river. The river seemed to fall asleep, and the cold tried to bind it with sleepy ice. And so it happened. It was a quiet, quiet starry night. The dark forest stood quietly on the shore, like a guard of giants. The mountains seemed higher, as they do at night. The lofty moon bathed everything with its quivering sparkling light. The mountain river, which was seething during the day, calmed down, and the cold quietly crept up to it, firmly hugged the proud, recalcitrant beauty and covered her as if with mirror glass. Gray Sheika was in despair, because only the very middle of the river did not freeze, where a wide polynya formed. There was no more than fifteen sazhens of free space where one could swim. The chagrin of Gray Neck reached the last degree when the Fox appeared on the shore - it was the same Fox that broke her wing.
“Ah, old friend, hello!” - Lisa said affectionately, stopping on the shore. - Long time no see ... Congratulations on the winter.
“Go away, please, I don’t want to talk to you at all,” answered Gray Sheika.
- It's for my kindness! You’re good, there’s nothing to say! .. But by the way, they say a lot of superfluous things about me. They themselves will do something, and then they will blame me ... For now - goodbye!
When the Fox was gone, the Hare limped over and said:
— Watch out, Gray Sheika: she will come again.
And the Gray Neck also began to be afraid, as the Hare was afraid. The poor woman could not even admire the miracles that were happening around her. The real winter has come. The ground was covered with a snow-white carpet. Not a single dark spot remained. Even bare birches, alders, willows and mountain ash were covered with hoarfrost, like silvery fluff. And firs have become even more important. They stood covered with snow, as if wearing an expensive warm coat. Yes, wonderful, it was good all around; and poor Gray Neck knew only one thing, that this beauty was not for her, and she trembled at the mere thought that her polynya was about to freeze over and she would have nowhere to go. The fox really came a few days later, sat down on the shore and spoke again:
- I missed you, duck ... Come out here; If you don't want it, I'll come to you myself. I'm not shy...
And the Fox began to crawl carefully over the ice to the very hole. Gray Sheika's heart skipped a beat. But the Fox could not get close to the water itself, because the ice there was still very thin. She put her head on her front paws, licked her lips and said:
- What a stupid duck you are ... Get out onto the ice! And yet, goodbye! I'm in a hurry about my business...
The fox began to come every day to see if the polynya had frozen. The cold weather has taken its toll. From the large polynya there was only one window a sazhen in size. The ice was strong, and the Fox sat on the very edge. Poor Gray Sheika dived into the water with fear, and the Fox sat and laughed angrily at her:
- Nothing, dive, but I'll eat you anyway ... Better come out yourself.
The hare saw from the shore what the Fox was doing, and was indignant with all his hare heart:
“Ah, what a shameless Fox… What an unfortunate Gray Sheika! Fox will eat it...
In all likelihood, the Fox would have eaten the Gray Neck when the polynya would have completely frozen, but it happened differently. The hare saw everything with his own squinting eyes.
It was in the morning. The hare jumped out of his lair to feed and play with other hares. The frost was healthy, and the hares were warming themselves, beating paws on paws. Even though it's cold, it's still fun.
Brothers, beware! someone shouted.
Indeed, the danger was on the nose. At the edge of the forest stood a hunched old hunter, who crept up on skis completely silently and looked out for a hare to shoot.
Eh, the old woman will have a warm coat, - he thought, choosing the largest hare.
He even took aim with a gun, but the hares noticed him and rushed into the forest like crazy.
- Ah, fools! the old man got angry. - Here I am already ... They don’t understand, stupid, that an old woman can’t be without a fur coat. She shouldn't be cold... And you won't deceive Akintich, no matter how much you run. Akintich will be more cunning ... And the old woman punished Akintich like: Look, old man, don’t come without a fur coat! And you sigh...
The old man set off to look for the hares in the tracks, but the hares scattered through the forest like peas. The old man was rather exhausted, cursed the crafty hares and sat down on the river bank to rest.
- Oh, old woman, old woman, our fur coat ran away! he thought aloud. - Well, I'll rest and go look for another ...
The old man is sitting, grieving, and then, looking, the Fox is crawling along the river - it is crawling like a cat.
- Gee, gee, that's the thing! the old man rejoiced. “The collar crawls to the old woman’s fur coat ... It’s obvious that she wanted to drink, or maybe she even decided to catch fish ...
The fox really crawled up to the very hole in which the Gray Neck swam, and lay down on the ice. The old man's eyes did not see well and because of the fox they did not notice the duck.
You have to shoot her in such a way that you don’t ruin the collar, the old man thought, aiming at the Fox. “But this is how the old woman will scold if the collar turns out to be in holes ... Also, one’s own skill is needed everywhere, but without tackle and a bug you won’t kill.
The old man took aim for a long time, choosing a place in the future collar. Finally a shot rang out. Through the smoke from the shot, the hunter saw how something darted on the ice - and rushed with all his might to the hole; on the way he fell twice, and when he reached the hole, he only shrugged it off - his collar was gone, and only the frightened Gray Neck was swimming in the hole.
- That's the thing! gasped the old man, throwing up his hands. - For the first time I see how the Fox turned into a duck. Well, the beast is cunning.
“Grandfather, the Fox ran away,” Gray Sheika explained.
- Did you run away? Here, old woman, and a collar for a fur coat ... What am I going to do now, huh? Well, the sin came out ... And you, stupid, why are you swimming here?
- And I, grandfather, could not fly away with the others. I have one broken wing...
“Ah, stupid, stupid ... Why, you will freeze here or the Fox will eat you!” Yes…
The old man thought and thought, shook his head and decided:
- And here's what we'll do with you: I'll take you to my granddaughters. They'll be delighted... And in the spring you'll give the old woman testicles and hatch ducklings. Is that what I say? Here's something stupid...
The old man got the Gray Neck out of the hole and put it in his bosom. And I won’t tell the old woman anything,” he thought, heading home. - Let her fur coat with a collar still take a walk in the forest. The main thing: granddaughters will be delighted...
Hares saw it all and laughed merrily. Nothing, the old woman will not freeze on the stove even without a fur coat.
The first autumn cold, from which the grass turned yellow, caused all the birds to be very alarmed. Everyone began to prepare for the long journey, and everyone had such a serious, preoccupied look. Yes, it is not easy to fly over a space of several thousand miles. How many poor birds would be exhausted along the way, how many would die from various accidents - in general, there was something to seriously think about.
A serious big bird, like swans, geese and ducks, was going on the road with an important look, realizing all the difficulty of the upcoming feat; and most of all, little birds made noise, fussed and fussed, like sandpipers, phalaropes, dunlins, blackies, plovers. They had long gathered in flocks and moved from one bank to another over the shallows and swamps with such speed, as if someone had thrown a handful of peas. The little birds had such a big job.
“Where is this little thing going?” grumbled the old Drake, who did not like to disturb himself. "We'll all leave in due time." I don't see what there is to worry about.
“You have always been a lazy person, so it’s unpleasant for you to look at other people’s troubles,” explained his wife, the old Duck.
- Was I lazy? You're just being unfair to me, nothing more. Maybe I care more than everyone else, but I just don’t show it. There is little sense in this if I run from morning to night along the coast, shouting, disturbing others, annoying everyone.
The duck was generally not entirely happy with her husband, and now she was completely angry:
“Look at the others, you lazybones!” There are our neighbors, geese or swans - it's nice to look at them. They live soul to soul. I suppose a swan or a goose will not leave its nest and is always ahead of the brood. Yes, yes ... But you don’t care about children. You only think about yourself to fill your goiter. Lazy, in a word. It's disgusting to even look at you!
"Don't grumble, old woman! After all, I'm not saying that you have such an unpleasant character. Everyone has their shortcomings. It's not my fault that the goose is a stupid bird and therefore nurses its brood. In general, my rule is not to interfere in other people's affairs. Well, why? Let everyone live in their own way.
Drake loved serious reasoning, and somehow it turned out that it was he, Drake, who was always right, always smart and always better than anyone else. The duck had long been accustomed to this, and now she was worried on a very special occasion.
- What kind of father are you? She pounced on her husband. - Fathers take care of children, and you - at least the grass does not grow!
Are you talking about the Gray Sheik? What can I do if she can't fly? I am not guilty.
Gray Sheika they called their crippled daughter, whose wing had been broken back in the spring, when the Fox crept up to the brood and grabbed the duckling. The Old Duck boldly rushed at the enemy and repulsed the duckling, but one wing turned out to be broken.
“It’s even scary to think how we will leave the Gray Neck here alone,” the Duck repeated with tears. Everyone will fly away, and she will be left alone. Yes, all alone. We will fly south, into the warmth, and she, poor thing, will freeze here. After all, she is our daughter, and how I love her, my Gray Neck! You know, old man, I'll stay with her to spend the winter here together.
What about the other children?
“They are healthy, they can manage without me.
Drake always tried to hush up the conversation when it came to Gray Sheik. Of course, he also loved her, but why worry yourself in vain? Well, it will stay, well, it will freeze—it’s a pity, of course, but still there’s nothing to be done. Finally, you need to think about other children. The wife is always worried, but you need to take things seriously. The drake felt sorry for his wife, but did not fully understand her maternal grief. It would have been better if then the Fox had completely eaten the Gray Neck - after all, she must die in the winter anyway.
The old Duck, in view of the impending parting, treated her crippled daughter with redoubled tenderness. The poor thing did not yet know what separation and loneliness were, and looked at the preparations of others for the journey with the curiosity of a beginner. True, she sometimes became envious that her brothers and sisters were getting ready for departure so cheerfully that they would again be somewhere, far, far away, where there was no winter.
"Are you coming back in the spring?" Gray Sheika asked her mother.
“Yes, yes, come back, my dear. And we will live together again.
To console Gray Sheika, who was beginning to think, her mother told her several similar cases when ducks stayed for the winter. She was personally acquainted with two such couples.
“Somehow, dear, you’ll get through,” the old Duck reassured. “First you get bored, but then you get used to it. If it were possible to transfer you to a warm spring, which does not freeze even in winter, it would be absolutely fine. It's not far from here. However, what is there to say in vain, we still can’t take you there!
“I will think of you all the time. - I will keep thinking: where are you, what are you doing, are you having fun? It won't matter, it's like I'm with you.
The Old Duck needed to muster all his strength so as not to betray his despair. She tried to appear cheerful and cried quietly from everyone. Oh, how sorry she was for dear, poor Gray Sheika. Now she hardly noticed the other children and paid no attention to them, and it seemed to her that she did not even love them at all.
And how quickly time flew by. There had already been a number of cold matinees, and the birches had turned yellow from the frost and the aspens had turned red. The water in the river darkened, and the river itself seemed larger, because the banks were bare - the coastal growth was quickly losing foliage. The cold autumn wind tore off the withered leaves and carried them away. The sky was often covered with heavy autumn clouds, dropping a fine autumn rain. In general, there was little good, and that day they were already rushing past a flock of migratory birds. The swamp birds set off first, because the swamps were already beginning to freeze. The waterfowl stayed the longest. Gray Sheika was most upset by the flight of the cranes, because they were so plaintively cooing, as if calling her with them. For the first time, her heart sank from some secret foreboding, and for a long time she followed with her eyes the flock of cranes flying away in the sky.
How good they must be, Graysheika thought.
Swans, geese and ducks also began to prepare for departure. Separate nests joined in large flocks. Old and seasoned birds taught the young. Every morning these young people made long walks with a cheerful cry to strengthen their wings for a long flight. Clever leaders first trained individual parties, and then all together. How much was the cry, young fun and joy. One Gray Neck could not take part in these walks and admired them only from a distance. What to do, I had to put up with my fate. But how she swam, how she dived! Water was everything to her.
“We need to go… it’s time!” the old leaders said. - What can we expect here?
And time flew by, quickly flew by. The fateful day has come. The whole flock huddled together in one living heap on the river. It was early autumn morning, when the water was still covered with thick fog. A duck joint has gone astray from three hundred pieces. Only the quacking of the chief leaders could be heard. The Old Duck did not sleep all night - it was the last night she spent with Gray Sheika.
“Keep close to the bank where the spring runs into the river,” she advised. The water won't freeze there all winter.
Gray Sheika stayed away from the joint like a stranger. Yes, everyone was so busy with the general departure that no one paid attention to her. The old Duck's heart ached as he looked at poor Gray Neck. Several times she decided to herself that she would stay; but how can you stay when there are other children and you have to fly with the joint?
- Well, touch! - loudly commanded the main leader, and the flock rose at once up.
Gray Sheika remained alone on the river and for a long time followed the flying school with her eyes. At first, everyone flew in one living bunch, and then they stretched out into a regular triangle and disappeared.
- Am I all alone? thought Gray Neck, bursting into tears. “It would have been better if the Fox had eaten me then.
The river, on which the Gray Neck remained, rolled merrily in the mountains covered with dense forest. The place was deaf, and no habitation around. In the mornings, the water near the coast began to freeze, and in the afternoon, thin as glass, the ice melted.
Will the whole river freeze over? thought Gray Sheika with horror.
She was bored alone, and she kept thinking about her brothers and sisters who had flown away. Where are they now? Did you arrive safely? Do they remember her? There was enough time to think about everything. She also knew loneliness. The river was empty, and life was preserved only in the forest, where hazel grouse whistled, squirrels and hares jumped.
Once, out of boredom, Gray Sheika climbed into the forest and was terribly frightened when a Hare flew head over heels from under a bush.
“Oh, how you scared me, stupid! said the Hare, calming down a little. - The soul has gone to the heels ... And why are you hustling around here? After all, the ducks have already flown away.
- I can't fly: the fox bit my wing when I was still very small.
- This is Lisa for me! There is no worse animal. She has been getting to me for a long time. You beware of her, especially when the river is covered with ice. Just grabs.
They got to know each other. The hare was as defenseless as the Gray Sheika, and saved his life by constant flight.
- If I had wings like a bird, then I would not be afraid of anyone in the world! Even though you don’t have wings, you know how to swim, otherwise you’ll take it and dive into the water, ”he said. “And I am constantly trembling with fear. I have enemies all around. In the summer you can still hide somewhere, but in the winter you can see everything.
Soon the first snow fell, and the river still did not succumb to the cold. One day, the mountain river, which was seething during the day, calmed down, and the cold quietly crept up to it, firmly hugged the proud, recalcitrant beauty and covered her as if with mirror glass. Gray Sheika was in despair, because only the very middle of the river did not freeze, where a wide polynya formed. There was no more than fifteen sazhens of free space where one could swim. The chagrin of Gray Neck reached the last degree when the Fox appeared on the shore - it was the same Fox that broke her wing.
“Ah, old friend, hello!” - Lisa said affectionately, stopping on the shore. - Haven't seen you in a while. Congratulations on winter.
“Go away, please, I don’t want to talk to you at all,” answered Gray Sheika.
- It's for my kindness! You are good, nothing to say! And yet, they say a lot about me too much. They themselves will do something, and then they will blame me. Goodbye!
When the Fox was gone, the Hare limped over and said:
— Watch out, Gray Sheika: she will come again.
And the Gray Neck also began to be afraid, as the Hare was afraid. The poor woman could not even admire the miracles that were happening around her. The real winter has come. The ground was covered with a snow-white carpet. Not a single dark spot remained. Even bare birches, willows and mountain ash were covered with hoarfrost, like silvery fluff. And firs have become even more important. They stood covered with snow, as if wearing an expensive warm coat. Yes, wonderful, it was good all around; and poor Gray Neck knew only one thing, that this beauty was not for her, and she trembled at the mere thought that her polynya was about to freeze over and she would have nowhere to go. The fox really came a few days later, sat down on the shore and spoke again:
- I missed you, duck. Come out here; If you don't want it, I'll come to you myself. I'm not arrogant.
And the Fox began to crawl carefully over the ice to the very hole. Gray Sheika's heart skipped a beat. But the Fox could not get close to the water itself, because the ice there was still very thin. She put her head on her front paws, licked her lips and said:
- What a stupid duck you are. Get out on the ice! And yet, goodbye! I'm in a hurry about my business.
The fox began to come every day to see if the polynya had frozen. The cold weather has taken its toll. From the large polynya there was only one window a sazhen in size. The ice was strong, and the Fox sat on the very edge. Poor Gray Sheika dived into the water with fear, and the Fox sat and laughed angrily at her:
- Nothing, dive, but I'll eat you anyway. Come out better yourself.
The hare saw from the shore what the Fox was doing, and was indignant with all his hare heart:
“Oh, how shameless this Lisa is. What an unfortunate Gray Neck! Fox will eat it.
In all likelihood, the Fox would have eaten the Gray Neck when the polynya would have completely frozen, but it happened differently. The hare saw everything with his own squinting eyes.
It was in the morning. The hare jumped out of his lair to feed and play with other hares. The frost was healthy, and the hares were warming themselves, beating paws on paws. Even though it's cold, it's still fun.
Brothers, beware! someone shouted.
Indeed, the danger was on the nose. At the edge of the forest stood a hunched old hunter, who crept up on skis completely silently and looked out for a hare to shoot.
“Oh, the old woman will have a warm coat,” he thought, choosing the largest hare.
He even took aim with a gun, but the hares noticed him and rushed into the forest like crazy.
- Ah, fools! the old man got angry. “Here I am. They don’t understand, stupid, that an old woman can’t be without a fur coat. Don't freeze her. And you will not deceive Akintich, no matter how much you run. Akintic will be smarter. And the old woman punished Akintichu: “Look, old man, don’t come without a fur coat!” And you sigh.
The old man was rather exhausted, cursed the crafty hares and sat down on the river bank to rest.
- Oh, old woman, old woman, our fur coat ran away! he thought aloud. - Well, I'll rest and go look for another.
The old man is sitting, grieving, and then, looking, the Fox is crawling along the river - it is crawling like a cat.
- That's the thing! the old man rejoiced. - The collar crawls to the old woman's fur coat. It can be seen that she wanted to drink, or maybe she even decided to catch fish.
The fox really crawled up to the very hole in which the Gray Neck swam, and lay down on the ice. The old man's eyes did not see well and because of the fox they did not notice the duck.
“We must shoot her so as not to ruin the collar,” the old man thought, aiming at Lisa. “But this is how the old woman will scold if the collar turns out to be in holes.” You also need your own skill everywhere, but without tackle and a bug you won’t kill.
The old man took aim for a long time, choosing a place in the future collar. Finally a shot rang out. Through the smoke from the shot, the hunter saw how something darted on the ice - and rushed with all his might to the hole; on the way he fell twice, and when he reached the hole, he only shrugged it off - his collar was gone, and only the frightened Gray Neck was swimming in the hole.
- That's the thing! gasped the old man, throwing up his hands. - For the first time I see how the Fox turned into a duck. Well, the beast is cunning.
“Grandfather, the Fox ran away,” Gray Sheika explained.
- Did you run away? Here you are, old woman, and a collar for a fur coat. What am I going to do now, huh? Well, the sin is gone. And you, stupid, why are you swimming here?
- And I, grandfather, could not fly away with the others. I have one broken wing.
“Oh, stupid, stupid. Why, you'll freeze here or the Fox will eat you! Yes.
The old man thought and thought, shook his head and decided:
- And here's what we'll do with you: I'll take you to my granddaughters. Here's something they'll be happy about. And in the spring you will give the old woman testicles and hatch the ducklings. Is that what I say? That's it, stupid.
The old man got the Gray Neck out of the hole and put it in his bosom.
“And I won’t tell the old woman anything,” he thought, heading home. - Let her fur coat with a collar still take a walk in the forest. The main thing: granddaughters will be delighted.
Hares saw it all and laughed merrily. Nothing, the old woman will not freeze on the stove even without a fur coat.
