I got a little dark yesterday. School shootings can do that to a person. Today I’ll share a joke from a book I’m reading, The Evenings by Gerard Reve.
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| Gerard Reve, joker |
At this school they were going to take a photograph of the whole class, but the little poor boy wasn’t allowed to be in it, he looked too ragged. The teacher told him: “listen, Pete, when that picture has been taken, later they will say: that’s Wim, he’s a bank manager these days; his father was a manager before him. And that is Klaas, he’s a notary. His father was a notary too. And that is Eduard, he’s a doctor now. And that one there is Joop, he is a clergyman. So, Pete, when the photographer comes in I want you to go stand over there. Do you understand?” All right, so the little poor boy does that and the picture is taken. A few days later the photographer sends them the picture.
“Who wants to order one?” the teacher asks. Most of the children do. Pete too. The teacher is surprised. She asks him: “Pete, what do you want a picture for? You’re not even in it.”
“I know, teacher,” he says.
“So why would you want to have one?” she asks.
“I’ll keep it,” he says. “Then later, when I’m grown up, I can say” this is Wim, he became a manager. And that’s Klaas, he’s a notary. And that is Eduard, he’s a doctor. And that’s our teacher, she started coughing up blood and died at an early age.”
Words & Music by Mike Power 