As I fed myself and the two ducks, my supply of food went by quickly. Good thing I usually eat a lot and brought sandwiches and other snacks. Upon finishing the first sandwich, there were some bread crumbs sticking to the plastic wrapper. I decided to not waste these crumbs and shook them off the plastic wrapper for the ducks to eat. At the moment I held out the wrapper and started shaking, the two ducks spooked out and flew to a safe landing nearby. I was stunted! These were the two ducks that came so close to me I could easily grab their necks and bring home some Peking ducks -. And now they are scared of the wrapper shaking?

They came back though. They must have decided that the plastic wrapper shaking was harmless and they weren’t about to let some other ducks enjoy the bread crumbs. But it happened again with the second sandwich. They got spooked with the plastic wrapper shaking, flew away, and came back again. What’s the deal? I thought to myself.

As I pondered upon this, it became clear that they simply reacted out of their natural instinct. A duck doesn’t have much of a weapon compared to other animals. It doesn’t have sharp teeth like a shark, powerful claws like a bear, or fierce combination of both like a lion. When faced with danger, a duck can only fly away. A duck doesn’t have much of a chance against us human, who can think and use our tools. Taking these things into account, the two ducks really took their chances when they got real close to me. And they knew it too, for they were ready to flee at first sign of danger. Fear must have been on their mind for sure. We can relate to this as we face many forms of fear in our lives. It can be a fear of rejection, fear of failure, or even fear of success. Fear is like wind resistance. The faster we move forward in our lives, the more wind resistance we face. The only time when there is no wind resistance is when we’re not moving. And the only time there is no fear is when we’re not doing anything. The trick is to not let fear stop us from getting to where we want to be. Successful people do have fear but they conquer it with action. And where there is action, there will surely be the results. So be like the ducky and go for the things you want in life.

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Although I now understand the reason why the first two ducks fought against the other ducks, I was mad at them at the time and stopped giving food. I went back to enjoy my sandwich and the pleasant scenery of the lake. With the food supply cut off, the first two ducks disappeared. “So predictable,” I thought to myself. Though I did wonder where they went, for I had looked around and didn’t see or hear them anywhere. But it didn’t matter where they went since I was then able to have lunch by the lake like I wanted to for the first time.

It must have been about ten minutes after they were gone that I started hearing something from underneath the table. As I looked to see what it was, there they were, sitting quietly underneath the picnic table the whole time! My God, how could I have been so blind? The two ducks were there the whole time and I didn’t even see them. I began to wonder whether they felt bad about the whole fighting episode and didn’t want to be seen. For sure they still wanted the food; otherwise, they would have been long gone already. Their action completely won me over once again and I resumed giving them food.

What these two ducks did was quite remarkable to me. Not only did they took initiative to win my attention and did what it takes to defend their hard earned food, they were willing to change their way to get the result. If the two ducks were to stood in front of me like they had done earlier while I was still mad at them, they would certainly not get the food. Instead, they changed their approach and backed off without losing sight of their desire purpose. In our lives, there may be many instances where we face similar situations. Just because things didn’t work this time doesn’t mean that things will not work in the future. Sometimes it takes a different approach to succeed. Sometimes, we may need to change the timing. When we get a “no” from a person, it could be that the person is not ready to say “yes” at that point. But if we were to try again when they are ready, a “yes” will surely be there. The key is to always evaluate and readjust, then try again. The ones who succeeded simply had more attempts and tried more ways. They also are willing to even change their goals when it is needed. So be like the ducky, and be willing to change to succeed.

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Things were going well for me and the two ducks. I was enjoying a nice day at the park and they were enjoying the food I gave. But things evolved, as always. Not long after the two ducks got their food, the other ducks started to notice. They may or may not be hungry at first, but now that they saw the two ducks receiving some food, they wanted some too. So they came, the two other duck couples who were hanging out by the lake. Even the seagulls now wanted in on the action and they stood back a little further behind all the ducks.

What happened next was quite astonishing to me. As soon as the first two ducks saw the latecomers, they went nuts. They lowered their heads at once in an attack mode and launched themselves toward the enemies with such a force that even I had to stand back, away from the battlefield. Luckily, there were no casualties. The latecomer ducks did not retaliate but simply retreated back to the lake. Although, it was a victory for the first two ducks, I got so mad at them for doing what they did. Why did you have to fight? I thought. I was gonna give you and the other ducks the food anyway. If you all gonna fight over it, then none of you will get it. So, I stopped giving out food after the whole episode.

Even though I was mad at them at the time, I now understand why the first two ducks did what they did. I imagine if I was a duck, finding food is probably the most important thing in my world. I mean think about it. A duck lives in a world where comfort is not a choice. It must fly hundreds of miles to find a warm place to find food. This takes energy and effort. When a duck is hungry, it doesn’t have a family, a friend, or a charity group that it can go to get food. The only way for it to survive is to find food or starve to death. The only ones who make it are the ones who are willing to do whatever it takes to get food. This is why the two ducks did what they did. They worked hard to get my attention and were there first. Why should the latecomers benefit from their efforts? We, as human, can really learn from them. We live in a world with tremendous resources and opportunities. In addition, we have the abilities and talents to find ways to get what we want. The only thing that stands between where we are now and where we want to be is the determination to do what it takes. So, be like the ducky and do what it takes to get what we want.

Popularity: 38%