Percy the pig

 Percy was not your average pig. Sure, he had the look and curly tail of every other pig on the farm, and yes, he enjoyed the occasional nap in the mud, but something in him always stirred when he looked beyond the fence, toward the glittering sea.

The other pigs would roll around and snort, content in their muddy pools, but Percy would stare longingly at the crashing waves just past the meadow. "Pigs don’t swim in the sea," they’d grunt. "That’s not what pigs do."

But Percy wasn’t so sure.

Each morning, a seagull named Sora would glide down from the clouds and perch on the fence beside him.

“Still staring at the sea, Percy?” she squawked.

Percy nodded. “It’s so wide and wild. It looks like... freedom. But pigs stay in the mud. That’s just how it is.”

Sora cocked her head. “Who told you that?”

Percy blinked. “Well… everyone.”

“Hmm,” she said, spreading her wings. “Everyone once told me seagulls don’t fly inland. But I did. And that’s how I found you.”

Percy’s ears perked up. “But I don’t know how to swim.”

“Neither did I—until I tried to fly.”

For days, Sora shared stories of dolphins that danced in the waves, turtles that glided through coral castles, and the feeling of salt in your feathers or fur. And day by day, Percy’s heart swelled with courage.

One golden afternoon, while the other pigs were dozing in the mud, Percy trotted to the edge of the meadow. The fence creaked as he squeezed through, the grass tickled his hooves, and the breeze smelled like possibilities.

Sora swooped overhead. “Ready?”

He gulped. “Not really.”

“Perfect,” she grinned. “That means your heart’s leading.”

Percy stepped into the surf. Cold! Wet! Strange! But Sora cheered, and Percy took another step. Then another. And then he paddled.

Awkwardly, yes. Clumsily, absolutely. But with each stroke, Percy laughed louder. He was swimming. Not just in water but in joy, in bravery, in the life he had always dreamed of.

From that day on, Percy became the pig who swam with the tide. The others shook their heads at first—but some began to wonder. Maybe pigs could do more than sit in mud. Maybe they could follow their hearts.

And all it took was a pig, a seagull, and a leap into the sea.