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There was a man in a small town who had a problem. Yesterday, while he was gone late at night, some thieves stole his money and possessions. In most towns, the answer would be to go to the police, but in this town the police were involved in the crime. That would explain why the thieves got away so easily.
This problem was not going to keep him from going to get his haircut this morning. When he went to the barber shop in his town, he noticed a new sign. It read "All people over seventy years old may pay one hundred dollars and get their hair cut every time they wish."
When he went inside, he had to wait quite a while. While he was waiting, he met an old man. After they talked a while, he told the old man of his problem. The wise old man told him that policemen came to the barber shop every Saturday. He could bring a tape recorder and catch them talking about it. Then he could take the police department to a higher court and get his stuff back.
He asked the wise old man how he acquired all his knowledge for he told him of many other things which he knew. The wise old man told him that in his younger years he traveled the world. During his travels, he came to a town called Silver Sliver where he met a former barber. This barber was very old and knew he would die soon. He wanted to pass on his wisdom from working at a barber shop and hearing all the intelligent men discussing things for most men who came in his shop were scholars, which wasn't common for that time.
The old man explained, "and now I'm taking advantage of that new deal on the sign because an odd side effect of the knowledge from that barber is that my hair now grows a foot overnight." Before the old man left, he reminded him to bring the tape recorder.
Next Saturday when the policemen came, he caught them talking about the theft on tape. Then he had what he needed to carry out their plan. The man was very pleased to get his stuff back. Everytime he saw the wise man, he thanked him.
After a few months, he finally decided to offer him some money, but the wise man refused. Instead, the wise man said he wanted to pass on his wisdom to him so he could help others. The wise man pulled a crystal out of his pocket and laid it in the man's hand.
It glowed so brightly that it was almost blinding. When the light faded, the wise old man had vanished. The man suddenly felt very good and very wise. Then he walked over and took a seat to wait for the next customer.
(9/1/94)
7th Grade
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