“First I would remind Milady, that although thy wish is to please thy husband, my bargain is not with him, and therefore he cannot receive the greatest benefit!
I will grant ye both the boons of wealth and youth on this condition; that thy husband shall be youthened into a babe for a minimum of one-quarter of his life.
I have grown tired of the sound of his voice and it pleases me that this should be so.
Three days after I have granted thy desires, he will change into a baby.
After three months have passed thou mayst but utter a magic word I shall reveal to thee and he shall be restored to an age of twenty-three.
After nine more months have passed he will again you then into a babe.
After spending three months as a baby thou may utter the magic word again and restore him as before.
This shall repeat for a period of one hundred and fifty years, after which the two of ye will instantly die and vanish into dust.
Would this satisfy thee?”
“Well…I guess…I guess if it’s okay with my husband…….I mean I’m not the one who will be a baby.”
The genie nodded and said to her husband, “What dost thou say, oh-misbegotten-son-of-a-diseased-camel?
Remember, these wishes were thine and not thy gracious wife’s.
Speak and quickly, lest I forget the courtesy due to thy wife and disembowel thee on the spot!
I have decided that she shall have the babe she desires.
Since thou hast not provided a babe for Milady to cherish and love, then for three months out of every year of your worthless life, thou shalt be her babe!
Think well, oh scion-of-serpents.
Hast thou been good to your wife? For one-quarter of every year, she will be thy mother.
She will be able to return any ill you have done her ten-fold.
Thou will be utterly in her power. Dost thou trust her absolutely? For it is on her word and hers alone that thou shalt be returned from infancy. She chooses to remain silent, thou shalt remain a babe.”
My husband looked at me and told the genie, “My wife’s a child who is incapable of living for any length of time without my supervision. I’m confident that she will return me to my rightful place.”
I nodded at the genie and he said, “So let it be written in the heavens that I have dealt fairly with this daughter of Eve. I have granted her desires, both spoken and unspoken. It is done.”
The genie laughed again and handed me an envelope; inside was a Texas lottery ticket, a list of stock/commodity buy and sell dates, a horoscope for each stock and instructions.
The genie grinned broadly at me and said,
“Seven thousand years ago, I would have caused a caravan loaded with silver to have appeared at thine village gate.
I believe that thou shalt find this method easier to explain to thy rulers.
When the stockbrokers ask how thou hast ascertained the correct stocks, give them the horoscopes.
They will think thee mad, but will not suspect thee of illicit trading.
Within three days thou shall have all that thou hast wished for, milady,” he said and whispered a word into my ear, then he vanished”.
That same night, all six numbers on the ticket were drawn in the lottery.
I was the only winner. Overnight we were worth forty-three a baby, is that right?”