A woman hired a carpenter for repairs on her farmhouse. One day a flat tire made him lose an hour of work, his electric saw quit, and then his ancient truck refused to start. The woman drove him home.

He invited her in to meet his family. As they walked toward the front door, he paused briefly at a small tree, touching the tips of the branches with both hands.

Inside, he smiled and hugged his two small children and gave his wife a kiss.

As he walked the client out to her car, she asked him about the tree.

“Oh, that’s my trouble tree,” he replied. “I can’t help having troubles on the job, but troubles don’t belong at home. So I just hang them up on the tree every night when I come home. Then in the morning I pick them up again.”

“Funny thing.” He smiled. “When I come out in the morning to pick them up, there aren’t nearly as many as I remember hanging up the night before.”