Once upon a time, there was a penguin couple. Now the female had laid her egg, and she went off to sea. One day, the male was walking around with his egg when a great gust of wind blew and the egg rolled out. Since penguins cannot move fast on land, they cannot run and catch the egg. So this penguin just had to hope that the egg would fall into good hands. And guess what? It did.
Now the egg had rolled into a Russian research station called Vostok, where a little girl named Gala caught the egg. Now as she was a small child, she had a notion to warm the egg herself. So she followed the childish notion, as her father thought it.
But to her father's surprise, after a few days, the egg hatched. So the days passed, and the penguin was still blind and helpless. On a particular day and time, Gala couldn't help being bored. So she decided to play with her penguin. When she approched the pen, she found that it was gone! Now she was very shocked, but she knew enough to know that she must get the penguin back before the penguin opens its eyes and will follow the thief forever.
And so she started the search for her baby penguin. She looked up, down and all around in her colony. She looked in ice cellars and makeshift labporatories. She checked the weather station and the observatory --- everywhere but her own tent.
When she was sobbing and screaming that she would give up, a wise man came to her and said,"Child, why do you cry in despair? I have a clue that you may bear."
When he said this she sulkily said,"Tell me, O Wise One."
He replied,"You have looked everywhere except your own sweet lair."
"Thank you, O Wise One!" She rushed to her tent and looked in every single nook and cranny. When she rushed into her sister's room, she found her younger sister, Marianna, rocking the penguin in her arms.
"Marianna! Give me my penguin!" she cried.
Marianna gloomily put the penguin into her hands. "It just opened its eyes!" exclaimed Gala with glee. Gala forgave Marianna and they became fast friends.
Copyright © 2009 Elizabeth John. All rights reserved.