A Fowl Reversal | Mullah Nasruddin Books by Ron J. Suresha

A Fowl Reversal

Once, when Nasruddin was a smuggler — for that is one of the things that Nasruddin did for work in those days — carrying eggs across the border was highly illegal. Of course, that made the worth of eggs all the greater, and all the more reason to carry them across the border as contraband.

As he approached the customs post, Nasruddin was carrying two dozen eggs in a covered basket on his head, trying to keep the border guard, Halil, from peering inside the basket. Halil stopped Nasruddin and asked what he was transporting.

“The smallest conceivable chickens,” said Nasruddin.

“There is a ban on importing livestock, so we shall have to impound your chickens,” said Halil, locking the basket in a cupboard. “Of course, while we are making inquiries, we shall feed them for you.”

Nasruddin pedalled fast. “You should understand that these are special chickens.”

“Is that so‽” said the guard.

“Indeed,” said Nasruddin, “you must have heard of animals who are so attached to their master that they grow old before their time, withering and dying young?”

“Yes,” replied Halil.

“The chickens are so young and sensitive, that if they are deprived of their master’s company for even a few minutes, they become young before their time.”

“Really? How young?”

“They can even revert to being eggs again.”

Excerpted from The Uncommon Sense of the Immortal Mullah Nasruddin: Stories, Jests, and Donkey Tales of the Beloved Persian Folk Hero

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