Wise Old Man
A wise old gentleman retired and purchased a modest home near a junior
high school. He spent the first few weeks of his retirement in peace
and contentment. Then a new school year began. The very next afternoon
three young boys, full of youthful, after-school enthusiasm, came down
his street, beating merrily on every trash can they encountered. The
crashing percussion continued day after day, until finally the wise
old man decided it was time to take some action.
The next afternoon, he walked out to meet the young percussionists as
they banged their way down the street. Stopping them, he said, "You
kids are a lot of fun. I like to see you express your exuberance like
that.
In fact, I used to do the same thing when I was your age. Will you do
me a favor? I'll give you each a dollar if you'll promise to come
around every day and do your thing."
The kids were elated and continued to do a bang-up job on the
trashcans.
After a few days, the old-timer greeted the kids again, but this time
he had a sad smile on his face. "This recession's really putting a big
dent in my income," he told them. "From now on, I'll only be able to
pay you 50 cents to beat on the cans."
The noisemakers were obviously displeased, but they accepted his offer
and continued their afternoon ruckus. A few days later, the wily
retiree approached them again as they drummed their way down the
street.
"Look," he said, "I haven't received my Social Security check yet, so
I'm not going to be able to give you more than 25 cents. Will that be
okay?"
"A freakin' quarter?" the drum leader exclaimed. "If you think we're
going to waste our time, beating these cans around for a quarter,
you're nuts! No way, dude. We quit!" And the old man enjoyed peace and
serenity for the rest of his days.
