Once There Was An Old Hermit Who Lived On The ...  PRO

Once there was an old hermit who lived on the side of a mountain. There were three little boys who were always trying to outsmart the old hermit. One of the little boys said, "I’ll put a marble in my hand and we will go to the old man and ask him what it is I have in my hand. So the three boys went to visit the old man and the little boy said, "Old man, what have I in my hand?"

The old hermit answered, "A marble". The three boys left and came back with another similar senario and to the boy’s astonishment the old man in his wisdom was able to answer the question. The next day the boys were pondering the situation trying to come up with something so ingenious that the old man would never guess the answer. Then one of the boy’s said, "I know, I’ll put this baby bird in my hand and I’ll ask the old man if the bird is alive or dead and if he says the bird is alive, I will crush it in my hand and outsmart the old man." So with smiles on their faces they went back to the old hermit’s house and the little boy said, "Old man, what have I in my hand?"

The old man answered, "A baby bird." Then the boy said, "Is this bird...