There were three sons who wanted to help their mom celebrate her 70th birthday
They knew she had had a hard life working long hours, working diligently to bring them up and educate them, and all three of them had done well financially
The first son set out, came back and told his brothers, "You know, I bought Mom a house. It has everything in it she could possibly want." The second son said, "Well, I bought her a Mercedes in her favorite color." The third son, knowing how Mother had loved to read her Bible, said, "Well I can top both of those gifts. I bought her a parrot that can quote the entire Bible. It took people twelve years to train this bird to do that."
They gave the gifts to their mother, and she was delighted. Shortly after that, each one received a thank you note from their mother. To the first son she wrote, "Son, thank you for the house. It's wonderful. It's beyond anything I have ever imagined."
To the second son she wrote, "Thank you
for the car. It's just great to be able to have a dependable vehicle and one that is so nice. I couldn't imagine having that wonderful of a vehicle ever in my life."
To the third son she wrote, "Thanks for the chicken. It was delicious."