The Three Lame Cats
There are three soldiers in battle, and the youngest, Ken, gets shot in the back. While the second oldest soldier, Paul, tries to stop the bleeding, the oldest, Wilbert, asks the wounded soldier to tell them a story to stay awake. The wounded soldier tells a story like this: “Once upon a time, there were three lame cats. The oldest one was named Wilbert. He was very strong, even though he was lame. In fact, he was lame because of his own strength. He hated dogs, and thought they were noisy and disgusting. One day, he fought with a dog that was urinating in his backyard. The dog bit his leg and broke it, and he became lame. The second cat was named Paul. He was very smart, even though he was lame. In fact, he was lame because of his own intelligence. He disdained mice, and thought they were stupid and greedy. One day when he was laughing at a mouse that had its tail caught in a mousetrap, the mouse bet his life that Paul wouldn’t be able to take the cheese out of the mousetrap and get away with it. Paul accepted the challenge, but his leg was broken by the mousetrap, becoming lame. The youngest cat was named Ken. He was neither strong nor intelligent.” “Why was he lame?” Wilbert asked. “No special reason,” Ken said, “He was born lame.”