Two friends were so close that neither would go anywhere without the other. One was single and the other was married. The single friend would visit the married man’s home, and the wife treated him with the same respect she gave her husband.
The husband asked why his friend did not marry. The bachelor replied that there was no good woman among the girls. His friend disagreed and said he would find him one like his own wife.
The bachelor laughed and said, “Your wife isn’t any good either!” The husband objected. The bachelor proposed a bet: whatever he told his friend to do, he would do.
He gave him three pills and told him to go home shaking as though he had the flu, say he was dying, cold and in pain, and then stop eating. The married friend did exactly that. His wife cared for him and covered him.
Several days passed. His wife cried and worried, and on the fifth day she went to his family. Everyone came and saw that his condition was terrible. He barely opened his eyes and asked, “Where is my friend?” His wife complained that his friend had not come.
Someone called the friend. He said he would come, but first he went to take a shower. Eventually he arrived, but the sick man was already “dead.” His wife reproached him for coming so late.
The friend quietly asked, “Did he say anything for me when he died?” She answered, “Nothing. He only said that I should marry you when he died.” Suddenly the “dead” man sprang up and cried, “When did I ever say that?!”
The bachelor said, “What? You said your wife was good. Is this a good woman?”
- Thanks to the Tavor (Cherkian) family.
- The story was told by Baruch Tavor and recorded by Liora Behar.
- The story is also recorded in the Israel Folktales Archives (IFA), named for Dov Noy at the University of Haifa, serial no. 10218.