Once upon a time, there was a farmer named Jake who had a yoke of oxen. One day, he took a nap under a tree but suddenly woke up because one of his oxen poked him with its horn. He rubbed his eyes, sat up and spoke to the oxen, "What's wrong? Why did you poke me?" The oxen replied, "We're tired of pulling this yoke every day. Can't we take a break?" Jake thought for a moment and said, "Alright, let's play a joke on each other."

So, the farmer and the oxen played jokes on each other until they were laughing so hard that the farmer nearly choked on his laughter. Then, the farmer told another joke that broke the oxen into fits of laughter. They laughed so hard that the yoke broke in two. From that day on, the farmer and the oxen became best friends, and they never had to pull a yoke again. They spent their days telling jokes and having fun. The end.

Reflections

1. Why did the farmer and the oxen stop pulling the yoke?
2. Why did the farmer and the oxen become friends?
3. What do you think would have happened if the farmer didn't play a joke with the oxen?
4. How did the farmer feel when he woke up from his nap?
5. What did the oxen say to the farmer when he woke up?