Il pulcino di Pasqua

In un tiepido mattino di primavera, proprio nel tempo della Pasqua, un piccolo uovo cominciò a tremare. Crack! Il guscio si aprì e ne uscì un minuscolo pulcino giallo.

“Pip! Pip!” cinguettò, sbattendo le ali ancora deboli. “Mamma? Dove sei?”

La chioccia si avvicinò subito e lo accolse sotto le sue ali calde. Il pulcino la guardò con occhi pieni di meraviglia, ma improvvisamente un forte boato fece tremare l’aria.

“Mamma… cos’è quel rumore?” chiese spaventato.

La chioccia sospirò e guardò lontano, oltre il nido. “È la guerra, piccolo mio. Gli uomini, a volte, dimenticano come volersi bene.”

Il pulcino si strinse a lei. “Ma perché succede?”

La chioccia lo abbracciò dolcemente. “Non lo so… ma ricorda questo: la Pasqua ci insegna che la vita è più forte della morte, e che l’amore può vincere anche la guerra.”

Quelle parole scaldarono il cuore del pulcino. Rimase in silenzio per un momento, poi alzò la testolina con decisione.

“Allora voglio aiutare! Voglio portare questo messaggio a tutti!”

E così, con più coraggio che forza, spiegò le ali e volò via.

Sorvolò campi silenziosi e città ferite, finché arrivò a un ospedale distrutto. Lì, tra le macerie, un neonato piangeva.

Il pulcino si avvicinò piano e disse con voce dolce:
“Non piangere, piccolo… non sei solo. La Pasqua è un tempo di pace e amore.”

Il bambino smise di piangere e lo guardò. Nei suoi occhi comparve un piccolo sorriso.

“Allora ascolta,” continuò il pulcino, “la vita è più forte della morte, e l’amore può vincere ogni guerra.”

In quell’istante accadde qualcosa di straordinario: il pulcino cominciò a brillare. Una luce dorata, calda come il sole, riempì la stanza e si diffuse fuori, nel cielo.

E, come per magia, i rumori cessarono. Le bombe si fermarono. Il cielo si aprì in una luce limpida.

Una colomba entrò dalla finestra, portando nel becco un ramoscello d’ulivo in fiore.

Il pulcino sorrise e disse:
“Questo è il messaggio della Pasqua: la pace e l’amore sono per tutti.”

Il bambino allungò le braccia e abbracciò il piccolo pulcino. In quel momento, la pace scese sulla terra.

E da quel giorno, ovunque, i bambini tornarono a sorridere.
Perché quando nasce la speranza, la pace può davvero cominciare.

Buona Pasqua.

Zaira Sellerio

The Easter Chick

On a mild spring morning, right at Easter time, a little egg began to tremble. Crack! The shell opened and out came a tiny yellow chick.

“Peep! Peep!” he chirped, flapping his still-weak wings. “Mommy? Where are you?”

The hen hurried over and welcomed him under her warm wings. The chick looked at her with eyes full of wonder, but suddenly a loud boom shook the air.

“Mommy… what’s that noise?” he asked, frightened.

The hen sighed and looked far away, beyond the nest. “It’s war, my little one. Sometimes humans forget how to love one another.”

The chick snuggled closer to her. “But why does it happen?”

The hen gently embraced him. “I don’t know… but remember this: Easter teaches us that life is stronger than death, and that love can overcome even war.”

Those words warmed the chick’s heart. He stayed silent for a moment, then lifted his little head with determination.

“Then I want to help! I want to carry this message to everyone!”

And so, with more courage than strength, he spread his wings and flew away.

He flew over silent fields and wounded cities until he reached a destroyed hospital. There, among the rubble, a newborn baby was crying.

The chick approached slowly and said in a gentle voice:

“Don’t cry, little one… you are not alone. Easter is a time of peace and love.”

The baby stopped crying and looked at him. A small smile appeared in his eyes.

“Then listen,” the chick continued, “life is stronger than death, and love can win every war.”

At that moment, something extraordinary happened: the chick began to glow. A golden light, warm as the sun, filled the room and spread outside, into the sky.

And, as if by magic, the noises ceased. The bombs stopped. The sky opened into a clear, bright light.

A dove flew in through the window, carrying a blooming olive branch in its beak.

The chick smiled and said:

“This is the message of Easter: peace and love are for everyone.”

The baby reached out his arms and hugged the little chick. In that moment, peace descended upon the earth.

And from that day on, children everywhere began to smile again.

Because when hope is born, peace can truly begin.

Happy Easter.

Zaira Sellerio

Review

The fairy tale “The Easter Chick” by Zaira Sellerio is a short but very intense story that beautifully combines the delicacy typical of children’s tales with a profoundly universal message.

Through the birth of a little chick and its symbolic journey, the author addresses complex themes such as war, suffering, and loss, yet manages to keep them accessible thanks to simple language and poetic imagery. The choice to let an innocent figure like the chick speak allows the harshness of reality to be filtered through the pure gaze of childhood, making the message even more powerful.

One of the most successful aspects of the fairy tale is its strong symbolic value: the golden light, the dove with the olive branch, and the reference to Easter as rebirth turn the story into a powerful metaphor of hope and peace. The almost miraculous ending emphasizes the desire for a world in which love can truly overcome conflict.

Furthermore, the story connects meaningfully with the significance of Easter in the Christian tradition, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the victory of life over death. In Christianity, Easter represents the central moment of faith: the triumph of light over darkness and of hope over suffering. This parallelism strengthens the message of the fairy tale, in which peace and love stand against war and destruction, symbolically echoing the Christian idea of rebirth and salvation.

From a narrative point of view, the story flows in a linear and engaging way, even though some passages feel highly idealized, almost fairy-tale-like in the most classical sense of the term. This is not necessarily a flaw, but rather a stylistic choice consistent with the genre of the fable.

In summary, it is an emotional story with a strong educational message, particularly suitable for children but also capable of speaking to adults. It serves as a beautiful reminder of the importance of peace, solidarity, and hope, perfectly in tune with the profound meaning of Easter in Christianity.

 

The book ‘Il coraggio è femmina’ by Zaira Sellerio is now available on Amazon in the Italian language!

Some awards and recognitions for her works

• National Poetry Prize “Arturo Massimi” in October 1999, Mentana – Rome.

• Plaque for the narrative prize at the international competition “Pelosa” in Messina, November 2000.

• Poetry plaque awarded by the Province of Rome, October 2000.

• International Competition “Antonio de Curtis” in Rome.

• Poets and Society Prize, German-Swiss delegation (international competition, honorable mention).

• Unpublished Poetry Prize, 5th edition of the “L’attualità – Bartolucci” prize, finalist diploma, October 27, 2001.

• International Artistic-Literary Competition “Antonio de Curtis – Totò,” Rome, October 22, 2002.

• ALIAS (Italian-Australian Writers’ Academy, in collaboration with C.R.A.S.E.S. in Palermo).

• International Literary Competition, 3rd ex-aequo poetry prize, October 10, 2003.

• First Poetry Prize at the “Il Salotto dell’Arte” gallery, Rome, March 22, 2009.

• “A Life for Culture” Prize, “Il Salotto dell’Arte” gallery, Rome.

• 4th International Literary Prize “Europa” for the novel From the Depths of the Heart, May 11, 2014, Lugano.

• 2nd Navarro Prize for the novel From the Depths of the Heart, May 13, 2018, Sambuca di Sicilia – Sicily.

• Special Lilly Broggi Prize “La Pergola Arte” for the novel From the Depths of the Heart, Florence, October 27, 2018.

• 5th Prize for the novel From the Depths of the Heart at Versilia Club “Massa, Fairy-Tale City of Sea and Marble,” September 28, 2019.

• 1st International Prize dedicated to the female universe “Donne d’Amore” V. Barrett, poetry section for “On the Steps of Piazza di Spagna.”

• 1st Prize for the literature section – novel, for the text Courage Is Female, Rome, May 22, 2023.

• Poetry Prize “At Your Feet,” city of Mercogliano (AV), for the poem “And There I Met My Mother,” September 8, 2024.

• 11th Edition San Valentino Prize – City of Atripalda (AV) – Cupido World Wide Section, for the poem “Ich habe dich geliebt” (I Loved You), April 26–27, 2025