December 8. “Button, I must tell you about this hilarious sight I witnessed on my way to the club:

I saw a crow pulling along a paper bag and desperately trying to untie the string so he could get to whatever was inside it. He failed on the first count, shook the bag fiercely and attempted to untie the string again. By this time, a couple of other crows had joined him and, between the three of them, finally managed to tear the bag and share the booty. I couldn’t make out what they were eating but could make out that they were having a good time.”

“Crows are very clever birds.”

“You know the story about the thirsty crow? A thirsty crow spotted a pitcher that was only half full with water. He thought for a moment and saw some pebbles in a distance and quickly hatched a plan. Picking up pebble by pebble with his beak he dropped them inside the pitcher till the water rose to the top. The crow then drank till it was satiated.  Clever, na?”

“Very clever.”

“What lesson do you learn from this story?”

“I don’t know.”

“That one must not give up trying. Try and try harder till you succeed.”