an old unmoving
threshing machine serves to hold
an empty bird nest
Twelve blind men are standing around a big contraption on the edge of a cornfield. Each one puts out his hands to identify the object. The first blind man says, "It's a bird's nest."
The second blind man says, "It's a metal pail with a lid."
The third blind man says, "It's a pair of spur gears."
The fourth blind man says, "It's a wooden latch on a wooden door."
The fifth blind man says, "It's a metal plaque with some letters and numbers, but not in Braille, so I can't read it."
The sixth blind man says, "It's a wheel with a handle sticking out from it."
The seventh blind man says, "It's a spool wrapped with thick cord wire."
The eighth blind man says, "It's a pair of wing nuts on a metal wall."
The ninth blind man says, "It's a wide wheel with four curved spokes on a metal chute."
The tenth blind man says, "It's a really old brake pad."
The eleventh blind man says, "It's a chain with rectangular links connecting two gears."
The twelfth man says, "It's a pitchfork."
A sighted person reads a plaque that says, "Nichols & Shepard Co. The Red River Special Line," looks at the nearby corn field and pronounces: "It's an old thresher."
