zippy-kat
07-20-2001, 08:33 PM
Hi guys!
I received this in an email a little while back. Thought everyone might get a kick out of it. ENJOY!
An old man lived with his bloodhound, Mace, in a run-down shack on the outskirts of town. He had no family and only a few meager possessions: a table and chair,a bed, a bag of hand tools, and his dog.
He used the tools to do odd jobs in town, for which he usually would be paid enough to get food for the next day. Mace and his master lived from one day to the next on what little these jobs would bring in. The dog was just a normal bloodhound, with one exception: while most dogs like to chew on grass occasionally, Mace loved it. When the old man was in town, Mace would spend the day in the yard in front of the house chewing away on the lawn.
One bright sunny day the old man said good bye to his dog and headed into town to work. He had a plumbing repair jobs in one of the homes that would take him most of the day and would probably pay enough for food for the remainder of the week, if he managed the money carefully. He headed for town with a spring in his step and a whistle on his lips.
Inside the house and ready to start, the old man reached in the bag for his wrench. To his surprise he didn't feel it. He dug around again, but there didn't seem to be a wrench. He looked in the bag, then dumped its contents on the floor, but still no wrench. Reality set in. Without a wrench he couldn't finish the job, and without the pay he couldn't even buy food for that night's supper, let alone for tomorrow. When he finally came to grips with reality, he told the lady who hired him what the situation was. While she sympathized with his situation, the job needed to be done. If the old man couldn't do it, she would have to hire someone else.
The old man picked up his tools and headed home, head bowed and shoulders stooped. The whistle was gone and no longer was there
a spring in his step. A walk that normally took 15 minutes seemed to last forever. But finally the old shack came into view, and there was Mace in the distance, munching away on the lawn.
When the bloodhound saw his master, he came running, tail wagging, telling the old man how glad he was to see him. Kneeling beside the hound, the man began to pet him, and through tear-filled eyes told the dog that there would be no supper tonight and no food for tomorrow. What's more, without money to buy a new wrench, he had no idea what the future would hold. It was the loneliest most helpless feeling he ever had!
Then he caught a glimpse of something shining in the grass. As the old man went over to see what this piece of shining material was, his dispair turned in an instant to joy! It was the wrench!! The old man had dropped it on his way out that morning, and it would have been lost forever had Mace not been eating farther away from the house then he usually did! The old man grabbed the dog, gave him a hug that almost suffocated him and ran into the house. Reaching for a stub of pencil and the only piece of paper he had, he wrote a moving tribute to his canine companion.
Few people have ever heard these words... until now that is. One man who did happen to read them changed them a bit and has his name recorded in music history. The old man never did get the credit he deserved. But now you are privileged to read the opening line of his original poem, which began :
"A grazing Mace, how sweet the hound that a saved a wrench for me."
I received this in an email a little while back. Thought everyone might get a kick out of it. ENJOY!
An old man lived with his bloodhound, Mace, in a run-down shack on the outskirts of town. He had no family and only a few meager possessions: a table and chair,a bed, a bag of hand tools, and his dog.
He used the tools to do odd jobs in town, for which he usually would be paid enough to get food for the next day. Mace and his master lived from one day to the next on what little these jobs would bring in. The dog was just a normal bloodhound, with one exception: while most dogs like to chew on grass occasionally, Mace loved it. When the old man was in town, Mace would spend the day in the yard in front of the house chewing away on the lawn.
One bright sunny day the old man said good bye to his dog and headed into town to work. He had a plumbing repair jobs in one of the homes that would take him most of the day and would probably pay enough for food for the remainder of the week, if he managed the money carefully. He headed for town with a spring in his step and a whistle on his lips.
Inside the house and ready to start, the old man reached in the bag for his wrench. To his surprise he didn't feel it. He dug around again, but there didn't seem to be a wrench. He looked in the bag, then dumped its contents on the floor, but still no wrench. Reality set in. Without a wrench he couldn't finish the job, and without the pay he couldn't even buy food for that night's supper, let alone for tomorrow. When he finally came to grips with reality, he told the lady who hired him what the situation was. While she sympathized with his situation, the job needed to be done. If the old man couldn't do it, she would have to hire someone else.
The old man picked up his tools and headed home, head bowed and shoulders stooped. The whistle was gone and no longer was there
a spring in his step. A walk that normally took 15 minutes seemed to last forever. But finally the old shack came into view, and there was Mace in the distance, munching away on the lawn.
When the bloodhound saw his master, he came running, tail wagging, telling the old man how glad he was to see him. Kneeling beside the hound, the man began to pet him, and through tear-filled eyes told the dog that there would be no supper tonight and no food for tomorrow. What's more, without money to buy a new wrench, he had no idea what the future would hold. It was the loneliest most helpless feeling he ever had!
Then he caught a glimpse of something shining in the grass. As the old man went over to see what this piece of shining material was, his dispair turned in an instant to joy! It was the wrench!! The old man had dropped it on his way out that morning, and it would have been lost forever had Mace not been eating farther away from the house then he usually did! The old man grabbed the dog, gave him a hug that almost suffocated him and ran into the house. Reaching for a stub of pencil and the only piece of paper he had, he wrote a moving tribute to his canine companion.
Few people have ever heard these words... until now that is. One man who did happen to read them changed them a bit and has his name recorded in music history. The old man never did get the credit he deserved. But now you are privileged to read the opening line of his original poem, which began :
"A grazing Mace, how sweet the hound that a saved a wrench for me."