Перевод с английского на русский, без переводчика за симпу.
The man who could turn back the clock.
Once upon a time there was a man eho had the power to turn back the clock. Whenever he regretted something he had done or said, he could repeat the event in the light of experience.
Now one day it happened that this man was out for a walk when it started to rain, so he took shelter in a barn. After a few minutes the man was joined by a very beautiful young lady and her dog, who were also seeking shelter. The downpour lasted about an hour.
The man went home to his wife and told her why he was late. Immediately his wife was suspicious of her husband’s behavior with the young lady. She questioned him about what had happened. The man replied in a surprised and hurt voice: «Why nothing happened. I was a perfect gentleman. What do you expect? Especially when she had such a large dog with her».
His wife was furious: “What!!! Only the dog stopped you!’
The man realized his mistake and immediately he turned the clock back a few minutes and tried the conversation again. This time when his wife expressed her suspicion, he said “It‘s true the girl was very beautiful and she seemed to like me but my deep love for you gave me the strength to resist temptation.
However, his wife was even more furious: “What!!! You wanted to kiss her! An immoral thought is as bad as an immoral deed”.
1.
The man spent a long time thinking. There must be some way to please his wife!
Finally he turned the clock back again a few minutes. Once more his wife asked how he had behaved with the beautiful young lady. But this time he replied: “What? She wasn’t beautiful, she was ugly! I am a man with good taste, which is why I married you, my darling!”
When she heard this, his wife, who in fact was rather unattractive, flung her arms around his neck and cried, ‘I love you!’
2.
The man felt that his wonderful power had not helped him at all. Except to teach him that it was impossible to please his wife, and he had suspected this for a long time. There-fore he turned back the clock once more, not just a few minutes, but a few hours. He went back to the beautiful young lady in the barn, in the rain.