What is it - survive the onslaught of the Black Swan

Costa Nariman Gusalov, graphic designer, artist, 46 years old:

"When I was 10, my parents sent me to a summer camp. It is located in the mountains of Uzbekistan, 14 km from the town of Chirchik. There was a lake, 150 meters in diameter, almost circular, very deep and cold, where swans live, and we ran to look at them and feed them through the bars, which the lake was fenced off from the camp. Children were forbidden to swim in it.

But on the opposite side of the lake stood the so-called director's house, where access to water was discovered. When my father came to visit me, the director just had guests, he invited his father to himself and allowed to take with me and my cousin, with whom I had a rest in the camp. Adult men made a real feast - the meat on the coals, tea, chess and vodka. They lay in batches on carpeted couch, half of which is on stilts overhung water. And so it was great that focus on children, no one paid.

And I was a good swimmer, and always wanted to swim in the lake. While the adults were talking, I thought, "If we have left unattended, it is necessary to cross the lake." And I swam.

As always, somewhere in the distance swans - by the way, they were black swans, and they have recently been lebedyata - but there, where I was going, they were not visible. And when he sailed up the middle, I suddenly saw me rushing some of the adult birds. I could not identify the female or the male is, but the bird was huge. Without thinking, the swan's beak began with all his strength to hit me in the face. I lowered my face in the water - he pecked me in the top of the head. I tried to raise his head, grab him by the neck, but he felt what we have unequal opportunities. A person in the water, the swan can do anything you want. Man against him - nothing. Honestly. Even if I was 20 and not 10 years, I would still nothing with him could not do. You try to stay afloat, but he hits the top, floating over you like a ship. the force of impact is very big, incredible flexibility of the neck, a huge wingspan. And he, if necessary, easy to take off half a meter, a meter and again hit with a terrible force. In general, it was just murder. I had to dive in and wait for him to drift away. But he did not swim away. I managed to make one sigh and sank back. How long it lasted, I do not know - maybe 4 minutes, maybe half an hour. Of course, he protected his children, and I was just the first person he saw in the lake. There is no one was swimming. Swan did not publish any sounds at all. He pecked me completely silent. In the end I realized that I was exhausted and could no longer stay under water. I thought he was going to kill me now, but even at this point I left the swan, and swam to their chicks. Why did he change his mind, I do not know.

I swam to the shore, climbed on a rock and watched for a long time in a daze toward the swans. He sported there quietly with her brood.

The main thing is that adults do not notice them and lay on the couch. But some of the events seen my cousin. He did not say anything to adults, but simply ran along the shore of the lake: "Oh, you look at yourself," I looked and saw that I was covered in blood. Pain from the shock I felt. It turned out the swan tore a huge amount of skin on the head. And then a brother ran to his father, and he dragged me through the camp to the clinic. In my head was the hole that was flowing, and children, who met us on the road, started back in horror.

When we reached the clinic, the nurse washed very calm and sprinkle my head off streptotsidom, he has filled peroxide and wrapped with a bandage. I came out a hero, and then somewhere else the week has been the subject of general interest: "Hey, kid, we station" Swan Lake "!" I am now well aware: if the swan has not changed his mind, I would have died. But I do not distribute their anger on other individuals - thoughts of revenge I have never visited. "