frog the air was cool, the water chilly the frog sat on a waterlilly for him to swim was not so pleasing he liked to watch the water freezing, practised jumps on the ice, and not very much later became famous as the worlds first and best figure skater.

Once upon a time there was a toad that lived in a pretty grass castle behind a small waterfall. The grass in his castle was thick and soft and of a lush dark green. There was never any sunshine at all inside the grass castle, it was always shady and fresh and that was very important, because our toad, like all the others of his kind, likes to have it wet and cool. The waterfall poured into a small pond in which the toad was able to swim, jump and splash to its heart's content. Sometimes he just lay down on a lily pad and let himself drift. It was a wonderful life, and the toad would have been completely happy and content if ... yes, if it had not been for loneliness! Well, there were newts in the pond and fish, and every now and then birds came flying to drink or take a bath, but the fish were not very talkative and the birds chatted in too high-pitched sounds that the toad did not understand. No, he clearly lacked the company of another toad. And that's why he often sat in front of his castle in the evening, behind the waterfall, and sang a sad toad´s song. Not far away, maybe a hundred toad-hoppers, from our toad and his grass-castle was another, much larger pond. It was dark and deep, and many toads and frogs huddled in it; and because it was so crowded and never quiet, sometimes one toad or another went a little bit away to meditate or simply to rest. And so it happened that one evening a she-toad heard the sad songs of our little toad from the grass castle. Oh, how beautiful was that voice, but so sad the song! It moved the toad to big, thick tears and she could not help it, she had to follow the sound, so she hopped off, first slowly and hesitantly, but then faster and faster, and it was not far, maybe a hundred toad hoppers, and she reached the small pond of our lonely toad. She looked around searchingly and croaked briefly and very gently. Our toad in his grass castle fell silent. Had not he just heard a soft voice? He dived through the waterfall and peeked out of the pond. Indeed! On the shore, on a flat stone, sat the most beautiful, most perfect being he had ever seen, with the strongest limbs, the longest tongue, and the prettiest warts imaginable! The toad was staring at the female, and she was staring at him, and then he ballooned until he was almost bursting and blew a very loud croak into the night. The female hopped quickly towards him, so he could climb onto her back, as is the custom with toads. Then they let themselves gently slide into the pond, and what they did there was covered by the darkness of the night.

Sitting on my balcony I take a delight in looking at the sea. Today it is calm, like a mirror, like a shiny polished silver plate. I can spend hours sitting here, contemplating, just looking, waiting, watching. Occasionally a white seagull will fly by, a tiny boat may sail smoothly along and get lost in the distance. Far out and close to the horizon, you will imagine rather than really see the large container carrying cargo ships and maybe one or another cruise liner, sailing in the distance, sailing on the invisible border line that separates the waters from the sky. You can feel the sea, you can hear it, you can smell it, and it will leave you yearning, wanting to stay and absorb it, to breathe it, it will fill your dreams. Sitting here on my balcony, I enjoy the song of the birds as they take a rest in the yellow flame tree next to the house. It is full of leaves and flowers and hard working bees. Their song fills my ears while the sea gives my eyes an incredible delight that I never tire of admiring. Sometimes, with the storms, its power frightens me and I am glad I am not out, helplessly exposed to its violence but safe and dry here on my balcony. My thoughts drift back in time and I see shades of sailors lost between waves but when I open my eyes, the sea is still peaceful and calm. Its beauty once again amazes me and I realise how lucky I am. A soft breeze touches me and the world around me, gently the leaves of the flame tree start to move. The sea, its waves now gently moving, reflects sunbeams in shades of blue and green, shining like stars. While the birds continue their song and the sun warms the afternoon, frayed white clouds dancing over blue sky announce a change of weather. I consider going inside but then decide I´d rather stay on my balcony and wait for the rain to come.

He climbed the taut rope ladder with routine. High, very high up into the dome of the circus tent he rose, while down below the clowns made a few last tired jokes, packten their horns away and, under the slowly ebbing laughter of the audience, stumbled hastily outside. It got qiet in the arena. Three more rungs, two - then he stood upon the tiny platform and opposite to him was Nina, the pretty, petite little Nina in her tight white costume decorated with sparkling silver stars, her long blonde hair tied into a perky ponytail. It was her first appearance before an audience, and he admired her courage, so high up, leaving herself completely in his power, relying only on him and his strength and his precision, trusting in his abilities, she put her life literally in his hands. She was only 14 years old, his so beloved, adorable Nina, but she had been training since childhood. In another life, she could have become a prima ballerina or Olympic champion, but she was here, she was his trapeze princess, the shining star on his circus sky. The band played a fanfare and then it became quiet, very quiet, the people in the stands holding their breath, just as he did when Nina pushed away; she floated as lightly as a feather; one might have heard a pin fall as she danced on the trapeze, rocking, gaining momentum; he loved that moment of silence, this was his world, this was the moment he lived for. He caught Nina's gaze as he pushed away, wrapping his legs around the trapeze in fluid motion, his arms dangling overhead. Then he opened his hands; he knew that Nina would release herself from her trapeze the same split second, dropping in the confidence that he would catch her and he sensed the right moment, he felt her fingers in his and he grabbed her. She held herself securely in his grasp, then pulled up smoothly, waiting for him to do the same, until they both stood on the trapeze, and together they swung back onto the platform; high up in the dome of the circus tent they stood and his gaze lost itself in Ninas soul.