The Chronicles of Donna the Duck:
Chapter 7: BACK HOME
On our return home after the weekend she was reunited with her garden and with evident pleasure she waddled around all her old haunts to check if everything was as she liked it. She soon tried out her old tin bath, had a good preen and settled down on her grassy bank quite happy to be home. We resumed our normal routine but this was soon shattered, very pleasantly by our Australian visitors Sharon and Simon. They had come to stay for several weeks and although Sharon , living in the country was quite used to having ducks around she was quite surprised to find just one on its own, living as a pet. I now wonder if perhaps she had thought she had come to a rather odd house, although my cousins' daughter we had not met before. Anyway we all settled in very well together and they were soon as fond of the dogs and the duck as we were. As Sharon and Simon were to stay in England for several months they both wanted to get jobs. Sharon's job meant she was on call so she was often at home when we were at work, so Donna was allowed more freedom to roam her garden. Still she never wandered away and always ran towards me quacking when I arrived home from work. All four of us often sat in the garden that summer and Donna would usually settle down near us, often under the table in a very contented way.
Looking back, we had no idea, what changes Sharon and Simons' visit was going to make to our lives.
It was an idyllic summer to me and somehow Donna added a great deal.
Perhaps I am a peasant at heart but I just loved to see her scratching around the garden and sleeping in a shady spot. However, now we were planning our summer holiday, so she was in for another boating experience, one of rather longer than a weekend. We were to leave our Australians at home while we went on a cruise that would take us just over 3 weeks. It took us several trips down to the boat to stock her up with food, clothes, diesel and of course Donna's needs. The biggest problem was straw, so I emptied out the two lockers that usually held firewood and filled them with straw but it is very bulky stuff and I wondered if I would have enough. As well as straw, pellets dishes and her bucket had to go. She is used to having a bucket full of water to hand, at least the water would not be far away on a canal. So we were ready to set off. Sharon drove our car so she could take it home and we were a real car full. Mick our pal was accompanying us so we set off, 4 adults, 2 dogs, lots of luggage and one duck. I am sure the car was groaning on its axles. It was a Friday evening after work, pleasantly warm as we unloaded, stowed our gear, said our farewells to Sharon and she wished us well and left. Our holiday had begun.
OUR SUMMER HOLIDAY
We cast off straight away as we had decided to get a few miles under our belts before dark.The men did the operating of the boat while I inside stowed gear and tidied up, hoping I would remember where I had put things. I was too busy to watch Donna but she seemed to accepted that she was back on board again and seem contented. I made us all a plate of sandwiches and went out on the stern deck. We sat out there enjoying the food and the passing countryside. Donna quacked loudly, she seemed to object to us being at the opposite end of the boat to her, but at least at that time she stayed put. Only the next day provided her with her first adventure. We were cruising slowly up the Trent and Mersey Canal at our usual steady pace of 4 miles an hour and quite without incident. I gained a certain amusement from the faces of the fishermen sitting on the banks. They could hear a duck quacking but couldn't see her unless she popped her head over the side of the boat. They looked pretty startled and we sure received some ribald comments, we heard "I'll have that with an orange in its mouth" the first time of many times.
It was a hot day and I had the two front doors of the boat open to let a breeze through. This found favour with her as she could watch me as I pottered about inside. This was fine until I moved towards the stern when she began to get worried, she would quack loudly and it was not long before with a flap of her wings, she had jumped down into the boat to follow me. Mindful of my carpet tiles I kept picking her up and replacing her in the cockpit. Each time it was not long before she rejoined me. I soon tired of this, the boat is steered from the stern and we do all tend to congregate there. So I decided I would try her out there with us. This stern is a flat area bounded by a 6 inch steel rim. I have never seen her move so fast, I had no sooner put her down on the stern, that she had jumped onto the rim, flapped her wings and jumped down into the river. I was stunned, it happened so quickly, but I do not know who was more shocked, me or Donna. She suddenly realised was was cast adrift on a wide expanse of water and we were steadily moving away and leaving her. She panicked and began following us at a great pace of knots, flapping and running on water in her efforts to catch us up. Unfortunately another boat was advancing towards us so we could draw into the bank until it passed. As soon as we had done this, Mel drew into the tow-path side, however, Donna in her blind panic had turned and was following the wrong boat. I suppose all boats look alike to a duck in a flap!
