The History: A Bad News Letter

A Near Miss

Por: Shamir Galvá

O

ne day, Peter Lenz, a young German from Berlin, was upset when he received some bad news in the mail. It was his call-up papers. He did not have any desire to spend the next two years doing military service somewhere miles away from his home and family, but he could not think of any good excuse. 

He did not suffer from any disability or sickness. He did not know anybody with “influence” who could help him in some way. He and his wife of three months did not have any children, so he could not refer to any special family circumstances.

As soon as he opened the letter, his wife Claudia knew there was something wrong. Peter explained the problem. They had to do something. Anything was better than two years away from home.

Fortunately, Claudia had an idea. She was a diabetic. At the examination, Peter could switch a specimen of her urine for his own and fool the doctors. They would excuse him on medical grounds!

After the examination two days later, peter returned home confident that their trick had worked. He was astonished a week later to receive orders to report for duty in a town 200 miles from home.

An officer explained, “We would have believed that you were diabetic, but not that you were pregnant, too!”

From: SUCCESS Communicating in English Michael Walker ADDISON-WESLEY PUBLISHING COMPANY 1995