Sparrow's fart...that's what some call that finest hint of light peeping from behind the distant hills like the first morning of the world. Delilah chuckled quietly to herself as she remembered her brood's reaction last night when they heard her say it for the first time.

"Ooooh... Mum said 'fart'," and

"I didn't know sparrows fart!"

Her beak lifted to one side as she thought about the meaning she had learned, long ago. She could hear Granny's voice as clearly as if she were nestled alongside her. "Sparrow's Fart is the earliest time of the morning, my dear," she'd said. "About the time when all the sparrows get up and let out a little fart to show the world they're awake." Delilah had a difficult time keeping that rumbling chuckle from turning into a laugh. Instead, she tightened her beak and began to move her muscles slowly, gently - ever so quietly - not to disturb her duckadees. Not yet. Nor Sampson either... for a little longer.

He had been exhausted when she took over guard duty some hours ago. Although both Sampson and Delilah could sleep in 'guard duck' fashion, with one eye open at all times ready to raise the alarm in a split second if danger threatened, Delilah knew it was not the same as the total rest when another was the 'watch-duck'.

Delilah's eyes softened, even moistened a little, watching Sampson sleeping soundly now. At last he believed in the safe haven Koona Lagoon was today... no longer the killing fields he had so frighteningly learned when he was just a young dude. Those terrible memories of his loss of Cousin Rupert and Great Uncle Archibald will never completely fade away, Delilah thought. As she remembered his reaction to her newest plan, she found her heart pounding painfully - almost as hard as it had back then. Unexpectedly she needed to duck her head beneath a wing to blot up a small tear threatening to trickle down her cheek.

"Koona Lagoon? You can't be serious!" Sampson had shuddered violently. Anyone could see the fear that rippled through his feathers as if a sudden strong wind had chilled him to the quills. Delilah's heart had plunged to the depths. Until then they'd agreed on everything about the migration.

"Ph-e-w-w-w-w." Delilah's sighs nearly matched the rhythmic preening of her feathers.Such a soothing way to think things through. With each stroke of her beak, she counted the fears she had crossed off his list of reasons not to come here. Some had been easily answered. Flying over countryside as they were, the distraction and confusion of lights would not be a problem – nor the chance of window collisions. Easy to avoid the few farmhouses below... AND their windows. She reminded herself to make doubly sure they veered slightly every time they approached a country town.

Exhaustion and starvation? "Not a problem," Delilah said cheerfully. "I've planned our migration route to be done in those two shorter spurts. The kids will handle it well."

She smiled to herself. She had never forgotten her long-lost mother's stern warnings –

Migrate late and invite the worst Fate, and

Tired drakes make mistakes, and

Weariness weakens wariness.

The youth and inexperience of their brood had been a concern to her at first, but she had reassured Sampson that with both of them to supervise, it was time for the youngsters to take some risks. "Besides," she said with great confidence, "Look how many successful migrations are made each and every season." Sampson had to reluctantly agree with that one.

The greatest battle she'd fought was to get Sampson believing and trusting the tales Aunt Gladys had shared from her last holiday with her family, now living permanently at the lagoon. Poor Aunt Gladys... it must be getting harder each year with family in two faraway places to visit. She's not getting any younger, poor old thing. Delilah shook her head sadly. How blessed I was to have two wonderful old dowager ducks to guide me - Granny AND Aunt Gladys. The pair of them had mothered Delilah ever since her own Mother had fallen victim to the Great Duck Plague of '99.

Delilah ducked her head in sorrow, as she felt an unexpected pain in the special corner of her heart where memories of lost loved ones lived. With difficulty and even greater resolve, she had shaken herself back into the here and now.

"But it's true Sampson... there's NO shooting allowed AT ALL anymore. Koona Lagoon is called a sanctuary now, just like Lake Ayla." When Sampson had still looked doubtful, Delilah explained what sanctuary meant.

"It's a special place that those human creatures have made what they call a conservation park... ", she began, but Sampson interrupted her—

"WHAT? A conversation park, did you say?"

Delilah sighed loudly. "LISTEN! I said c-o-n-s-e-r-v-a-t-i-o-n park, silly. It means to look after something properly - to conserve and preserve something important." When she was sure he understood, Delilah continued. "They call it protection of wetland values and that means the wetlands are important to Man. And they promise it's a waterfowl refuge area free from hunting, so that on the many small islands- just like our one here - we'll all be safe from foxes and wild dogs, as well."

She found she had to reassure Sampson quite a few times before the frown left his forehead. But it seemed, despite her best efforts, his eyes still looked doubtful.

"Oh well," she had thought and blew gentle breaths as she nuzzled her beak into his neck feathers where he was most ticklish. Despite himself, Sampson had scrunched up his shoulders and chuckled deeply. Just like the first Delilah in history, she always knew the best way to twist his feathers around her webbed feet, and get him to agree to almost everything. He had to admit - even if it was somewhat reluctantly - Delilah was almost always right. Think it's a female thing, he had thought. And nodded his head in agreement with himself.

"Aaaaaawhnnn.... ", "Aaaaaawhaaannn... ", "Hmmm-mm-mm-nn... ". The babies began to wake up and yawn and scratch their ears with the tips of their clawed feet. Some stretched their wings and flapped a few times to shake the sleep out and bring warm feeling back in. Sampson was awake in an instant at the first noise, straightaway alert for danger to his brood.

"Good morning my sleepyheads." Delilah fondly smiled at her cherubs, and then stretched her neck to nudge Bella awake again. As always, the pretty little prima donna was trying to pretend she hadn't woken, in the hope no one would notice and she could go back to sleep for a little longer..

As usual, Patrick was fully awake and keen to go do something... anything, straight away. While he was still laying down he was fossicking in the grass around him, seeking a worm, or perhaps the root of some grass. And Sandy and Mandy, as always, took one look at him, another one at each other, and then copied his every move. Hungry or not, if Patrick was looking, there must be something there.

"Kids! Kids! Listen to me." Delilah made her sternest, most important face and voice. "Don't eat too much now, or you won't be able to lift off." Ignoring all the protesting quacks, she continued, in a most determined fashion. "Remember how I told you to eat well last night?" All the heads nodded, with Fabian shaking her head so hard, Delilah feared it would drop off.

"I know Mum, I know." Fabian was instantly excited, "... because then the food would give us lots of energy ."

"And it would get di-ges-ted properly," chimed in Alphonso, always eager to be the one who knew the most about everything.

Delilah smiled happily at Sampson over the heads of their duckadees, now stretching and squirming and getting more eager by the moment for their NEXT BIG ADVENTURE.

Ducking her head to one side so they wouldn't hear her, Delilah said,"It won't be long at all now, until our brood is one year old and ready to start their own families... and then you DO know what comes next...?" and she paused and rolled her eyes super-dramatically.

"GRANDPARENTS?" Sampson gasped, and a tremor rippled through his body, all the way from his beak to his tail. But Delilah soon smoothed down his sudden alarm and his feathers when she gently reminded him that then there would be just the two of them - alone again at last. Abruptly Sampson's frown disappeared as a sparkle returned to his eyes and a lift to one side of his beak."Hmm..." was all he said, but it was enough.

The family looked about them one last time. Eyes lingered on the reeds that grew well down into the depths of the lagoon. The water was so still it was near impossible to see where the grasses stopped and their reflection began. They all agreed. It had been a safe refuge, a luxury retreat from their everyday life. They felt sad to be leaving it... and yet full of hope and excitement about Lake Ayla where they would be settling in later today... maybe forever.

Sampson and Delilah smiled in their own special way at each other, and then nodded their encouragement to the breathlessly waiting brood. And with a great flurry, the family lifted off, quickly forming up into their favourite 'V', with their Dad in the lead. They were happy their Mum was in last position, making sure absolutely nobody was left behind.

And Delilah? She quivered with pride at the sight of the perfect lines flying before her. What a family, she thought. But with such a handsome father, how could they have failed? And she sighed contentedly as the land dropped away, far below them.

Homeward bound now to the last stop... Lake Ayla.

Delilah Duck WAS delighted!