Friends forever ...

An old cowboy was riding his trusty horse followed by his faithful 


dog along an unfamiliar road. The man was enjoying the new 


scenery, when he suddenly remembered dying, and realized that the 


dog beside him had been dead for years, as had his horse. 


Confused, he wondered what was happening, and where the trail 


was leading them.

After a while, they came to a high, white stone wall that looked like 


fine marble. At the top of a long hill, it was broken by a tall arch 


topped by a golden letter “H” that glowed in the sunlight.

Standing before it, he saw a magnificent gate in the arch that looked 


like mother-of-pearl, and the street that led to the gate looked like 


gold.

He rode toward the gate, and as he got closer, he saw a man at a 


desk to one side. Parched and tired out by his journey, he called 


out, ‘Excuse me, where are we?’ 

‘This is Heaven, sir,’ the man answered.

‘Wow! Would you happen to have some water?’ the man asked.

‘Of course, sir. Come right in, and I’ll have some ice water brought 


right up.’

As the gate began to open, the cowboy asked, ‘Can I bring my 


partners, too?’ 

‘I’m sorry, sir, but we don’t accept pets.’

The cowboy thought for a moment, then turned back to the road and 


continued riding, his dog trotting by his side.

After another long ride, at the top of another hill, he came to a dirt 


road leading through a ranch gate that looked as if it had never been 


closed. As he approached the gate, he saw a man inside, leaning 


against a tree and reading a book. 

‘Excuse me,’ he called to the man. ‘Do you have any water?’

‘Sure, there’s a pump right over there. Help yourself.’

‘How about my friends here?’ the traveler gestured to the dog and 


his horse.

‘Of course! They look thirsty, too,’ said the man.

The trio went through the gate, and sure enough, there was an old-


fashioned hand pump with buckets beside it. The traveler filled a 


cup and the buckets with wonderfully cool water and took a long 


drink, as did his horse and dog.

When they were full, he walked back to the man who was still 


standing by the tree. ‘What do you call this place?’ the traveler 


asked. 

‘This is Heaven,’ he answered.

‘That’s confusing,’ the traveler said. ‘The man down the road said 


that was Heaven, too.’

‘Oh, you mean the place with the glitzy, gold street and fake pearly 


gates? That’s hell.’

‘Doesn’t it make you angry when they use your name like that?’

‘Not at all. Actually, we’re happy they screen out the folks who 


would leave their best friends behind.’ 




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