He approached a crystal clear pond and saw a family of the most beautiful birds he had ever seen - swans.
As he sat by the water’s edge, he didn’t even dare to ask these birds if he could join, for he knew if he was too ugly to live with ducks, geese, and humans, he was surely too ugly to live with a gorgeous bevy of swans.
Suddenly, a swan gracefully glided through the water over to where the ugly duckling was sitting.
“My, my! Your feathers are the whitest I have ever seen. How they gleam in the sun!” the swan exclaimed to the ugly duckling.
Confused, the ugly duckling wandered to the water and peered at his reflection. Much to his surprise, he was not an ugly ducking, for he was not a duck at all! He was a beautiful white swan with a long and elegant neck.
Suddenly, a swan gracefully glided through the water over to where the ugly duckling was sitting.