Motivation Mondays: Malena & Klepetan in a Stork Love Story
“True love is eternal, infinite, and always like itself. It is equal and pure, without violent demonstrations.” Honoré de Balzac
Motivation Mondays: Malena & Klepetan in a Stork Love Story
Recently, while scrolling through my Instagram feed, I came across a post by Sir David Attenborough, a British broadcaster, writer, and natural historian. It was about a pair of white storks who shared a long and everlasting love story. I was immediately drawn to his post because I found the story compelling and the love and devotion between the storks, Malena and Klepetan, so moving that I wanted to learn more. Someone in the comments section of Sir David’s post shared this version of the story with me, and I invite you to read it and contemplate its beauty. What lessons can we learn from these two storks about love, resilience, commitment, and trust? What can we learn from Stjepan Vokić’s kindness and assistance that helped Malena survive a gunshot wound and thrive in a relationship with Klepetan for 28 years?
We often talk about the resilience of the human spirit, yet that resilience exists in all life forms, and all life forms have feelings and can experience the deepest and most profound love in a relationship. Read and share your thoughts.
1. THE TRAGEDY AND THE RESCUE (1993)
The story began in 1993 in the small village of Brodski Varoš, Croatia. A school janitor named Stjepan Vokić found a female stork near a pond. She had been shot in the wing by poachers, leaving her severely injured and permanently unable to fly.
Vokić rescued her, named her Malena (which means “Little One”), and built her a cozy, insulated nest on his roof for the spring and summer. For the freezing Croatian winters, he built her a warm winter shelter in his garage. He became her caretaker, feeding her fresh fish and keeping her safe.
2. ENTER KLEPETAN (2001)
Because Malena could not migrate, she was incredibly lonely during the winter months. However, in the spring of 2001, a wild male stork landed on her roof. He chose Malena as his mate.
Vokić named him Klepetan, after the distinct klepetanje (clacking) sound storks make with their beaks.
3. THE 13,000-KILOMETER JOURNEY
Storks are migratory birds. When August arrived and the autumn chill began to set in, the instinct to migrate was too strong. Klepetan had to leave Malena behind to fly south for the winter.
He traveled an astonishing 13,000 kilometers (over 8,000 miles) from Croatia, across the Mediterranean, over the Sahara Desert, all the way to South Africa.
But the real magic happened the following March. Against all odds, Klepetan returned.
Let These be Your Desires by Khalil Gibran
Love has no other desire but to fulfill itself
But if your love and must needs have desires,
Let these be your desires:
To melt and be like a running brook
That sings its melody to the night.
To know the pain of too much tenderness.
To be wounded by your own understanding of love;
And to bleed willingly and joyfully.
To wake at dawn with a winged heart
And give thanks for another day of loving;
To rest at the noon hour and meditate love’s ecstasy;
To return home at eventide with gratitude;
And then to sleep with a prayer
For the beloved in your heart
And a song of praise upon your lips. Via poemofquotes
More Below!
“What we have once enjoyed we can never lose; All that we love deeply becomes a part of us.” Helen Keller
Motivation Mondays: Malena & Klepetan in a Stork Love Story
Documentary: Storkman – From Rise and Shine World Sales
Can you believe that for 19 consecutive years, Klepetan made that perilous 13,000-km journey to South Africa and back, always returning to the same rooftop and the same mate? He usually arrived around March 24, exhausted and hungry, but fiercely loyal. How were we able to learn the distance he traveled? A tracking device was attached to Klepetan, and it recorded his back-and-forth movements. Truly remarkable, because humans often imagine such behavior in each other, not in another species. The Vimeo link and video above can be rented or purchased for your viewing enjoyment. It tells the remarkable story of Malena and Klepetan’s love for each other.
4. AN UNCONVENTIONAL FAMILY
While Klepetan was away, Vokić took care of Malena. When Klepetan returned, Vokić took care of both of them. He would catch buckets of fish to help Klepetan recover from his grueling journey so the male stork could focus on helping Malena hatch and raise their young.
Because Malena couldn’t fly to hunt for food, Klepetan and Vokić worked as a team. Over nearly two decades, Malena and Klepetan successfully raised 66 chicks together. Klepetan taught every single one of them how to fly before guiding them south for the winter.
5. TRAGIC LOSS AND A GRIEF-STRICKEN DISAPPEARANCE (2019)
The most heartbreaking season of their romance occurred in March 2019. Stjepan Vokić later confirmed that it was indeed the real Klepetan who arrived incredibly early that year, landing on March 18. However, because it was still freezing winter in Croatia, the climate was brutal. Malena laid her eggs, but the intense, unseasonal cold snap caused them to freeze and perish right in the nest.
What followed was a deeply tragic sequence of events fueled by Klepetan’s profound distress:
The Early Arrival: Klepetan had rushed back a week or two earlier than usual, facing an unforgiving winter environment that the birds could not overcome.
The Disappearance: Deeply distressed by the loss of the eggs and completely exhausted from his grueling 13,000-km flight, Klepetan’s behavior became completely abnormal. On April 18, 2019, he abruptly abandoned the nest and vanished, leaving for the entire spring and summer.
The Misunderstanding: Because a healthy stork normally never abandons its mate for the summer, Stjepan and the local media assumed the worst. They believed the grief-stricken, elderly Klepetan had flown away to a quiet place to die of old age. News outlets worldwide even ran emotional, heartbreaking obituaries mourning the end of the world’s greatest bird romance.
6. THE MIRACULOUS RETURN (2020)
But Klepetan shocked the world and proved the obituaries wrong. In April 2020, he landed right back in the nest with Malena, covered in dust and dirt from his long journey. Stjepan recognized his unique behavior immediately and confirmed that Klepetan hadn’t died at all – he had taken a very rare, mysterious “gap year” to heal and recover from the tragic loss of their frozen eggs.
He stayed the whole summer, and the couple happily and successfully raised a new clutch of chicks that year.
More Below!
“If we can teach people about wildlife, they will be touched… humans want to save things that they love.”Steve Irwin
Motivation Mondays: Malena & Klepetan in a Stork Love Story
This is the version of the story shared with me. A few minor adjustments were made to the timeline so the events would flow more naturally and we could all follow the storyline. I hope you enjoyed reading Klepetan and Malena’s love story. What are your thoughts?
7. HOW THE MAIN STORY ENDED (2021)
Like all great love stories, time eventually caught up with them. Storks in the wild rarely live past 20 to 25 years.
In April 2021, Klepetan returned one final time to spend the spring and summer by Malena’s side. Just a few months later, on July 7, 2021, Malena passed away of old age in the arms of Stjepan Vokić, after 28 years of being fiercely cared for by humans and loved by her mate. Klepetan stayed right beside her through her final days.
8. LIFE AFTER MALENA (2022 – 2026)
Storks are driven by powerful biological instincts to reproduce and migrate. While humans view them as symbols of lifelong monogamy, nature requires them to keep moving forward.
In 2022: To Stjepan’s surprise, Klepetan returned to the same Croatian rooftop. Finding the nest empty, he eventually took a new, younger female mate whom Stjepan nicknamed Mlada (“Young One”).
In 2026: Klepetan made his 25th consecutive return journey from South Africa. This spring, he arrived with another new partner, whom Stjepan has named Snajka (“Daughter-in-law”).
9. A HEARTBREAKING RITUAL
While Klepetan has moved on biologically to keep raising new generations of storks, he has shown a behavior that has stunned both locals and scientists. When Malena died, Stjepan buried her in her favorite spot in the school garden, right under a blooming apple tree where she used to sit and wait for her mate.
According to Stjepan, every spring when Klepetan arrives from his grueling 13,000-km journey, he does not fly straight to the nest. Instead, he lands in the yard first and walks over to the apple tree to visit Malena’s grave, standing there quietly before flying up to the roof to begin his summer.
So, while he didn’t disappear, Klepetan clearly hasn’t forgotten the “Little One” who waited for him on that rooftop for two decades. Their bond lives on in a truly unique way.
Positive Motivation Tip: “I’m not an animal lover if that means you think things are nice if you can pat them, but I am intoxicated by animals.” David Attenborough
PHOTO CREDITS/ATTRIBUTIONS: All Photos: Storks in Love via Pixabay, Wikipedia
Additional Sources: YourStory – A Stork Love Story, Medium – The Long Enduring Love Story of Klepetan and Malena
Until Next Time…
Ask. Believe. Receive. ©
Elizabeth Obih-Frank
Mirth and Motivation
Positive Kismet
