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March 02, 2003 |
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Man and Mule
FOUND by Chris Pusateri
in Boulder, Colorado
I rescued this photo from the lobby of my apartment, where some wayward tenant had left it. An hour later, my landlord -- an enormous Serb, who like many in our complex, doubles as a Buddhist -- saw the picture.
"This picture," he said, "reminds me of something you would see in my country."
"In this picture," I said, "I am the mule." My landlord laughed. I continued, "You will notice that the old man who holds the reins also carries a riding crop. The mule is the most stubborn of animals, and the old man has learned that if the reins fail to move the mule, he can always resort to the quirt." I looked at the picture some more. "But I can't figure out who the old man is."
The landlord looked at me, and with his typical Serbian solemnity said, "You are both the mule and the old man."
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Untitled #5 December 25, 2005 |
Boy on Horse April 14, 2002 |
Food For Thought June 02, 2007 |
Shopping and Guys July 30, 2007 |
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We collect FOUND stuff: love letters, birthday cards, kids' homework,
to-do lists, ticket stubs, poetry on napkins, telephone bills, doodles -
anything that gives a glimpse into someone
else's life. Anything goes...
i love the story that goes with this
I loved this photo as soon as I saw it. The expressions on both the man and the mule look the same. They both appear to be pretty tired too. I wonder what they are thinking. The story is nice too, but the photo really grabs me.
Your story is beautiful :)
My absolute favorite find.
Beautiful story.
Beautiful find and beautiful story. Very enlightening.
Too deep for me (at least at 9 a.m.). It is a very charming photo though - glad it was rescued! :)
What an ass!!!!!
I wonder if the mule got rescued (in the Donkey Sanctuary) or if it finished up in pies.
What's a quirt?
The old man looks as if he is concentrating very hard, like Toscanini. Or perhaps he's blind and this is his guide mule.
Look closely: this little donkey is pulling a wagon filled with the bones and remnants of everything the old man has ever done. When they reach the river, the raft to take them across will be too small, and the old man must choose what to take with him and what to leave behind. In the end he takes only the whip, offering the donkey, the cart and his belongings to a man traveling in the other direction. Half-way across the river, he drops the whip into the water and notices the fresh breeze on his face.
A mule, if this is one, is the Prius of equines: it's a donkey hybrid.
That is such a wonderful story! And the photo is so charming :)
I love your story, Crisis. Thank you.
You shouldn't stand in the middle of paved roads.
I am clapping with one hand.
Great find, great story! I wonder if the man is stubborn too. Is it common for Serbs to be Buddhist? I am also wondering, what is a quirt?
quirt (kwûrt)
n.
A riding whip with a short handle and a lash of braided rawhide.
This picture is nothing without the story behind it. What a cool, pleasing, and introspective situation following the discovery of that photo.
In Serbia there are no Buddhists, he must have converted himself. They are mainly Muslim, Jewish, Orthodox or Catholic.
Great, great story. And, a fantastic picture.
Also, Midlife Crisis, love your interpretation.
It's a donkey, not a mule.
This find stands out for me for two reasons,
firstly because the story is really something quite lovely and a bit strange, and secondly because the place where the picture was taken is eight miles from where I sit - in fact I think I recognise the man from when I was young. The road he is standing on is to the front of a hotel called the Shannon Shamrock which is beside the tourist hot-spot of Bunratty, County Clare. The hotel and castle are to the right of the trees in the background, just out of shot.
Oh, and incidentally, the little donkey is pulling a wagon filled with butter churns rather than bones and remnants, while the man may well be both blind and stubborn.
But your interpretations are far more interesting folks.