Zippy and the Summer He Dreamed Of

7-9 min read
20 pages

On the snowy shores of Antarctica lives a little penguin named Zippy, a dreamer who longs to know the world beyond the ice. One bold day he sets off to find something he has only imagined — real, golden summer! Along the way he lands on a sunny beach, makes a whole camp of new friends, and learns that the very best part of any journey isn't the places you go, but the friends who go with you in your heart.

On a snowy stretch of Antarctic shore lived a little penguin named Zippy. He was a true dreamer, and more than anything he wanted to know the world that lay far beyond his home of ice and endless white.

He loved the stories most of all — tales of faraway warm places, where the sun shone longer and brighter, and the water was gentle and soft as a bath.

One day, watching the waves lap softly against the ice, Zippy made up his mind. He would go! And with hardly a second thought, he slid down the slippery edge, splashed into a strong, tugging current, and — whoosh — off he swam into the great unknown.

Zippy swam and swam, leaving the cold Antarctic waters far behind. He watched the last icebergs melt away over the horizon, and he grinned as the waves grew warmer and warmer beneath him.

After a few days, Zippy washed up on a little beach where bright sunshine and soft, velvety sand were waiting to greet him. It was the exact opposite of home! Zippy turned in slow circles, drinking in every single wonder of this brand-new world.

Just up the beach stood a summer camp full of children. When they spotted their unusual visitor, they blinked at one another in surprise — and then, bursting with curiosity, they came running.

“Wow, a real penguin!” cried a girl named Tina. “Hi. I'm Zippy,” the penguin said shyly, ducking his head at all the attention.

The children crowded around Zippy and happily showed him their favorite things. They chattered about the warm water and the sunshine, and they flopped down to show him how to stretch out and soak up the sun. Zippy was amazed! He had never once imagined you could simply lie in the sand and enjoy being warm.

“So what else do you do at the beach?” Zippy asked, eyes wide. “We play beach volleyball, we swim, and we build sandcastles,” explained a boy named Jake. “Want to join us?”

At first Zippy only watched the children splashing and laughing in the water. But at last he worked up his courage and jumped in, paddling his little flippers this way and that in the strangely warm sea.

To his surprise, swimming here was so much easier than in the icy Antarctic waves! He even decided to teach the children his special “penguin style” — sliding along on his belly across the water, showing them exactly how real penguins do it.

Next the children wanted to teach Zippy volleyball. At first it was tricky — his stubby wings and round little body were not made for this game at all! He hopped and flapped and missed the ball every single time.

But Zippy was not about to give up! With every new try he grew quicker, until he found a trick all his own — bopping the ball with his beak. The children laughed and laughed, and soon the whole game turned into a joyful, giggling muddle of cheers and friendly teasing.

“We have our own games back home too,” Zippy said cheerfully. “Like penguin races! Want me to show you how?” The children loved the idea. Zippy showed them how to hop and then slide along the sand, and together they held a grand contest: who could dash to the water and back the fastest.

Zippy was thrilled that the children liked his game. Even though he felt a bit clumsy on the sand, that didn't stop him one bit — he laughed right along with everyone and loved every silly, happy minute of it.

Day by day, Zippy felt more and more a part of the friendly little band. The children shared the wonders of summer with him: the warm sand that tickled his feet, the soft breeze that carried the smell of the salty sea, and the sunbeams that wrapped everything around them in cozy gold.

And Zippy, in his turn, gladly shared stories of his faraway icy home. He told them of endless white plains, and showed them how he glided across pretend ice and dove into the cold to catch a fish. The children listened, spellbound, imagining snowy lands so very far from their warm and sunny shore.

At last the day came when Zippy had to go home. Though they were a little sad, the children hugged him warmly goodbye and gave him a tiny seashell, to remember their camp and all the fun they'd shared. “When you see this shell, think of us — and of warm summer!” said Tina, holding out her gift.

Zippy took the shell, deeply moved, ran a flipper over its smooth surface, and smiled from the bottom of his heart. “I'll never forget you, or our adventures,” he said. “And maybe one day I'll come back, to swim in the warm water again and play penguin games with you.”

And with those words, Zippy said goodbye to his new friends and set off on the long journey back to Antarctica. In his heart he carried the warmth of summer, the joy of adventure, and the most precious thing of all — the memory of the true friendship he had found at the summer camp.

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Zippy and the Summer He Dreamed Of

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