Jack_One

Once upon a time, there was a son named Stephen Harper. He was in charge of his own home but he was pretty much unemployed.

"What shall we do? What shall we do?" cried his wife.

"Cheer up, honey,” said Stephen Harper. “I'll go and get a job in Canadian politics.”

"We've tried that before, and nobody would take you," said his wife. "We must sell our Ford Focus and with that money start a political campaign or something."

"All right," said Stephen Harper. "It's market day today, and I will see what I can do."

So he took the Ford Focus car keys in his hand, and off he went. He hadn't gone far when he met a funny looking old man, who said to him: "Good morning, Stephen Harper."

"Good morning," said Stephen Harper, and wondered how the old man knew who he was.

"Well, Stephen Harper, where are you off to?" said the man.

"I'm going to market to sell my Ford Focus."

"Oh, you look like just the right kind of guy to sell used cars," said the man. "I have some organically grown beans with me. How about swapping me your Ford Focus for these incredible life saving and environmentally friendly beans?”

"Excuse me?" asked Stephen Harper.

"You don't know what these beans can do," said the man. "If you plant them, overnight they will grow right up to the sky."

"Really?" said Stephen Harper.

"Yes, really,” answered the old man. “If it doesn't turn out to be true, you can have your Ford Focus back, no questions asked." Stephen Harper thought about it for a bit.

“OK,” Stephen Harper answered. “I just need to know your name so I can find you tomorrow if this doesn’t work out with the beans tonight.”

The old man smiled and said, “Jack Layton.”

"Right. Jack Layton," Stephen Harper repeated out loud to himself and handed the car keys and pink slip to the old man. Jack Layton gave Stephen Harper the beans, they switched places and the old man drove off in the Ford Focus.

He ran back home as quickly as his size 12 feet would take him. When he got home, his wife said, "Back already? I don’t see the Ford Focus in the driveway, so you must have sold it. How much did you get for it?"

"You'll never guess," said Stephen Harper.

"Five thousand Canadian dollars? Maybe ten thousand? Fifteen thousand? I can’t imagine you got twenty thousand Canadian dollars. Did you get that much?”

He opened up his hand and showed his wife five organically grown beans.

"What!" screamed his wife. "I married an idiot!! And as for your precious beans here they go out of the window. Go to bed. No Halo 3 for you tonight and you can forget about that Delisio rising crust pizza, too!"

So Stephen Harper went upstairs to his little room in the attic and cried himself to sleep.