The Ugly Duckling

ne upon time, a mother duck sat on her eggs. She felt tired of sitting on them. She just wished the eggs would break out.
Several days later, she got her wish. The eggs cracked and some cute little ducklings appeared. "Peep, peep" the little ducklings cried. "Quack, quack" their mother greeted in return.

However the largest egg had not cracked. The mother duck sat on it for several days. Finally, it cracked and a huge ugly duckling waddled out. The mother duck looked at him in surprise. He was so big and very gray. He didn't look like the others at all. He was like a turkey
When the mother duck brought the children to the pond for their first swimming lesson. The huge grey duckling splashed and paddled about just as nicely as the other ducklings did. "That is not a turkey chick. He is my very own son and quite handsome" the mother said proudly
However, the other animals didn't agree. They hissed and made fun of him day by day. Even his own sisters and brothers were very unkind. "You are very ugly" they quacked.
The little poor duckling was very unhappy. "I wish I looked like them" he thought to himself. One day, the ugly duckling run away and hid in the bushes. The sad duckling lived alone through the cold and snow winter. Finally the spring flowers began to bloom. While he was swimming in the pond, he saw three large white swans swimming toward him. "Oh, dear. these beautiful birds will laugh and peck me too" he said to himself. But the swans did not attack him. Instead, they swam around him and stroked him with their bills. As the ugly duckling bent his neck to speak to them, he saw his reflection in the water. He could not believe his eyes. "I am not an ugly duckling but a beautiful swam" he exclaimed.
He was very happy. From that day on, he swam and played with his new friends and was happier than he had never been.

The story of Toba Lake

Once upon a time, there was a man who was living in north Sumatra. He lived in a simple hut in a farming field. The did some gardening and fishing for his daily life.

One day, while the man was do fishing, he caught a big golden fish in his trap. It was the biggest catch which he ever had in his life. Surprisingly, this fish turned into a beautiful princess. He felt in love with her and proposed her to be his wife. She said; "Yes, but you have to promise not to tell anyone about the secret that I was once a fish, otherwise there will be a huge disaster". The man made the deal and they got married, lived happily and had a daughter.

Few years later, this daughter would help bringing lunch to her father out in the fields. One day, his daughter was so hungry and she ate his father’s lunch. Unfortunately, he found out and got furious, and shouted; “You damned daughter of a fish”. The daughter ran home and asked her mother. The mother started crying, felt sad that her husband had broke his promise.

Then she told her daughter to run up the hills because a huge disaster was about to come. When her daughter left, she prayed. Soon there was a big earthquake followed by non-stop pouring rain. The whole area got flooded and became Toba Lake. She turned into a fish again and the man became the island of Samosir.