Duck Pond Fog and the Long Day

"Is it still today?" asked Olivia, peering over the edge of her boat.

She sat on the bank of the duck pond with her toy boat in her lap. It was the longest day of summer, and the sun had stayed up so long that even the ducks were yawning. Olivia wanted one thing. She wanted to sail her boat all the way across the pond, to the big flat leaf on the far side, before the sun went down.

"Today goes on and on," said Mrs. Quack, who was busy sorting reeds for her nest. "That is what long days do."

Olivia tied a string to her boat and gave it a push. The boat bobbed across the water. Then the string went tight. It had run out! The boat sat in the middle of the pond, not even halfway.

"Come back," said Olivia, and she pulled. Nothing happened.

So she tried tying on her shoelace. Too short. She tried her hair ribbon. Still too short. The boat just sat there, turning in a slow circle.

Then Olivia noticed something. Fog was creeping over the pond, soft and white, the way it did every evening. And it kept things. Everyone knew that. A feather left in the fog stayed till morning, and so did a lost mitten.

"The fog keeps things," said Olivia slowly. "So it can keep my boat."

She took a deep breath and blew. Puff! The boat drifted a little. She blew again. Puff, puff! Little ripples pushed it on, and the fog wrapped around it like a blanket.

Mrs. Quack looked up from her reeds. "Quack?" she said, which meant, "What are you doing?"

"Sailing," said Olivia.

The boat slipped through the white fog and bumped against the big flat leaf. Thunk.

Olivia sat down on the bank, her cheeks puffed and tired. The sun slid low and orange. The ducks tucked in their heads, one by one. Out on the leaf, her little boat rocked and rocked, and then it was still.