The farmer and the leprechaun

 

THE FARMER AND THE LEPRECHAUN

A farmer was walking home after work. On the way, near a shoe factory, there was a leprechaun sitting and drinking mate. Surprised, the farmer politely asked for a sip, as he was very thirsty, but the leprechaun refused and vanished.

Farther ahead, the same leprechaun again, drinking yerba mate. This time the farmer acted quickly and put the leprechaun into a cloth bag he used to buy bread.

Poor leprechaun, he can never get out again. The farmer asked him to reveal where he had hidden the magical treasure with renewable gold coins; his family was poor and it would be very welcome.

Outraged, the leprechaun said the treasure was hidden in the enchanted forest, on the other side of the crystal-clear waterfall, in an underground cave… and begged to be released, saying he didn’t like being trapped.

The farmer kept the leprechaun’s treasure and released the damn creature into the meadows so the snakes would eat him in one bite. Poor leprechaun! He can’t pay the rent anymore. His magical treasure—a pot of pure gold coins—was stolen.

He’s been seen traveling through Latin America, wandering with not a cent to his name. He lost all his elegance, sleeps on park benches, looks like a beggar. He turned to drinking, can’t stop consuming alcohol. Poor leprechaun, he can never work again, he fell into depression. He has no money, he lost the business of his life.

The end.

Michael River