The Rabbi's Hat

A Rabbi's Blessing

A Rabbi was walking down the street when, suddenly, a strong gust of wind blew his shtreimel (fur hat) off his head. The Rabbi ran after his hat, but the wind was so strong it kept blowing it farther away. He just couldn't catch up. A young man, witnessing this event and being more fit than the Rabbi, ran after the hat and caught it. He handed the hat over to the Rabbi. The Rabbi was so pleased and grateful that he gave the man $20, put his hand on the man's head, and blessed him. The young man was very excited about both the tip and the blessing. He decided to take his new-found wealth to the racetrack. He bet the entire $20 on the first race that he could. After the races, the young man returned home and recounted his very exciting day to his father. "I arrived at the fifth race," said the young man. "I looked at the racing program and saw a horse by the name of 'Top Hat' was running. The odds on this horse were 100 to 1. It was the longest shot in the field. After saving the Rabbi's hat, having received the Rabbi's blessing, getting the $20, and seeing 'Top Hat' in the fifth race, I thought this was a message from God. So, I bet the entire $20 on Top Hat. An amazing thing happened! The horse that was the longest shot came in first by five lengths." "You must have made a fortune!" said the father. "Well yes, $2,000. But wait, it gets better," replied the son. "In the following race, a horse by the name of 'Stetson' was running. The odds on the horse were 30 to 1. Stetson being a kind of hat, and again thinking of the Rabbi's blessing and his hat, I decided to bet all my winnings on this horse." "What happened?" asked the excited father. "Stetson came in like a rocket. Now I had $60,000!" "Are you telling me you brought home all this money?" asked his father. "No," said the son. "I lost it all on the next race. There was a horse in this race named 'Chateau,' which is French for hat. So I decided to bet all the money on Chateau. But the horse broke down and came in last." "Hat in French is 'Chapeau,' not 'Chateau,' you moron!" shouted the father. "You lost all of the money because of your ignorance. Tell me, what horse won the race?" The son answered, "A long shot from Japan named 'Yarmulke.'"