An old Jew got a parrot from his sons after his wife died, to keep him

company. He discovered that the parrot had heard him pray so often, that it

had learned to pray. The old man was so thrilled, that he decided to take

his parrot to the synagogue on Rosh Ha'shana (the Jewish new year). When he

entered with the bird, the rabbi tried to protest, but when he told them

the parrot could pray ("daven", in Yiddish), they got interested - though

skeptical. People started betting on whether the parrot would pray, and the

old man happily took all the bets. The prayer starts -- the bird is silent.

The prayer continues - not a word from the bird. The prayer ends, and the

old man, crestfallen, pays out the bets. On the way home he asks his

parrot: "What did you do to me? I know you can pray, you know you can pray,

I bet you can pray - and you let me down!". Says the parrot: "Look ahead,

man, can you imagine what the odds will be like on Yom Kippur?".