A newlywed farmer and his wife were visited by her mother, who immediately demanded an inspection of the place to see if it was up to her standards. Naturally nothing is good enough for her daughter, so she is complaining up a storm. While they were walking through the barn, the farmer's mule suddenly reared up and kicked the mother-in-law in the head, killing her instantly.

At the funeral service a few days later, the farmer stood near the casket and greeted mourners as they walked by. The pastor noticed that whenever a woman would whisper something to the farmer, he would nod his head yes and say something, but when a man walked by and whispered to the farmer, he would shake his head, no and mumble a reply.

Curious, the pastor later asked the farmer what that was all about. The farmer replied, "The women would say, "What a terrible tragedy," and I would nod my head and say, "Yes, it was." The men would ask me, "You wanna sell that mule?" and I would tell them that I was sorry, but I could not sell her. You see father, because of this tragedy, the mule is all booked up for the next year."