THE OLD PROSPECTOR

An old prospector shuffled into the town of

El Indio, Texas, leading an old tired mule. 

The old man headed straight for

the only saloon in town,

to clear his parched throat. 

He walked up to the saloon and tied

his old mule to the hitch rail.

As he stood there, brushing some of the dust

from his face and clothes,

a young gunslinger stepped out of the saloon

with a gun in one hand and a

bottle of whiskey in the other.

The young gunslinger looked at the old man

and laughed, saying,

"Hey old man, have you ever danced?"

The old man looked up at the gunslinger

and said, "No, I never did dance...

Never really wanted to."

A crowd had gathered as the gunslinger

  grinned and said, "Well, you old fool,

you're gonna dance now,"

and started shooting at the old man's feet.

The old prospector, not wanting to get a

toe blown off, started hopping around

like a flea on a hot skillet.

Everybody was laughing. 

When his last bullet had been fired,

the young gunslinger, still laughing,

holstered his gun and turned around

to go back into the saloon.

The old man turned to his pack mule,

pulled out a double-barrelled shotgun

and cocked both hammers. 

The loud clicks carried clearly through the desert air.

The crowd stopped laughing immediately.

The young gunslinger heard the sounds too,

and he turned around very slowly.

The silence was almost deafening.

The crowd watched as the young gunman

stared at the old timer and the large

gaping holes of those twin 10 gauge barrels. 

The barrels of the shotgun never wavered

in the old man's hands,

as he quietly said,

"Son, have you ever kissed a mule's Ass?"

The gunslinger swallowed hard and said,

"No sir ... But... I've always wanted to."

There are a few lessons for us all here:

Never be arrogant.
Don't waste ammunition.
Whiskey makes you think you're smarter than you are.
Always, always make sure you know who has the power.
Don't mess with old folks, they didn't get old by being stupid.