The game they play in heaven

今日はラグビーの大学選手権決勝のＴＶ中継があります。午後はコンサートを聴きに出かけるので忘れずに録画しなくちゃ。高校生の時にラグビーを始め、社会人になり、結婚して子供ができてもラグビーを続けたのですが、３５才で米国に転勤となってからラグビーが出来なくなりました。定年退職したら老人のラグビーをしたいと思っていたのですが、結局叶えられず今は毎日卓球をしています。そんなラグビー好きだった私の為の様なジョークに出会いました。
Two 90-year-old men, Mike and Nicholas, have been friends all their lives. When it's clear that Nicholas is dying. Mike visits him every day. One day Mike says, "Nicholas, we both loved rugby and played together for so many years. Please do me one favour: when you get to heaven, somehow you must let me know if there's rugby there." Nicholas agrees, then shortly after, he passes away.
A few nights later, Mike is awakened from a sound sleep by a blinding flash of white light and a voice calling out, "Mike - it's me, Nicholas."
"Nicholas!" exlaims Mike. "Where are you?"
"I'm in heaven. I have some really good news, and a little bad news."
"Tell me the good news first," says Mike.
"The good news is that there IS rugby in heaven. Better yet, all our old friends are here, we're all young again, it's always springtime, it never rains and we never get tired."
"That's fantastic!" says Mike. "So what's the bad news?"
"You're rostered on for Saturday."
いよいよお陀仏になりそうな時にこのジョークを思い出すことにしよう。