One bright sunny morning, Abu Ali went out for a stroll with his friend, Rassuf. As they walked, they came upon the carcass of a fish. Obviously, it had been left beside the riverbank by a careless fisherman a few days before, since the stench of its rotting flesh was almost unbearable.

"Ugh!" exclaimed Rassuf, "What a terrible odor! How irresponsible to leave that fish there to assault all those who pass by!"

"I agree, dear friend Rassuf," replied Abu Ali. "Perhaps we should remove it so that other passerby do not have to encounter such an unpleasant smell."

At that suggestion, Rassuf burst into anger.

"Golly! What a foolish idea! Let someone else take care of it!"

"My friend," said Abu Ali, "that was a rather hasty of you to decry my idea. Removing the fish would be a nice thing to do. But even if it was a silly idea, you should not use minced oaths like that."

"I know swearing is bad! But I was not using a minced oath, I was just using a euphemism," replied Rassuf.

"You are misinformed, dear Rassuf. A euphemism is a nice word that delicately describes a disagreeable one. You were not using a euphemism—nor a circumlocution, for that matter! My friend Rassuf, you were being presumptuous and using a "minced" version of a swear word. Don’t you see?"

"Okay, that might have been a minced oath, but I think it’s fine to use it," snapped Rassuf, and he turned peevishly to go.

"Wait a moment, my friend. Why don’t you come to my house for lunch? I already have some food cooking."

Remembering the delicious dishes that loaded down Abu Ali’s table, Rassuf swallowed his anger and agreed to accompany him home. As they turned back down the path, Abu Ali said,

"My dear Rassuf, would you like to take this fish along with us to supplement our lunch?"

Horrified, Rassuf replied, "No! Most certainly not! I would never eat such a foul-smelling, half-putrefied mess!"

"Are you sure? Well, that’s fine Rassuf—neither would I," answered Abu Ali, to the puzzlement of his companion.

When they arrived back at Abu Ali’s little stucco dwelling, Rassuf went into the dining room to wait while Abu Ali bustled into the kitchen to put the finishing touches on the meal. Aromatic, mouth-watering smells came wafting out of the room, and Rassuf muttered to himself,

"I am very glad I took up his offer for lunch. Abu Ali may be wrong about some things, but he is right about good food!"

Suddenly, Abu burst out of the kitchen with a bag in his hand.

"One moment—I must get one more ingredient!" he gasped, and rushed swiftly out the door.

"What on earth is he planning to do? There are not any shops nearby," Rassuf muttered.

Within a few moments, Abu Ali was back, and he popped into the kitchen before his friend could ask any questions. After a little while, he came proudly out, bearing a steaming bowl of soup, a well-heaped plate of rice and meat, and a crusty, warm hunk of bread, which he set at his own place.

"I’ll be right back with yours," he told his friend.

By this time, Rassuf was feeling famished, and he expectantly awaited his Abu’s return. Moments later, he swished out and placed, with a flourish, a large plate at Rassuf’s place. Staring down on it, Rassuf beheld, to his horror and shock, a whole heap of finely cut pieces from the putrefying fish he had seen on the walk!

"What an insult! Is this meant to defraud me? I will never, ever…"

"One moment, dear Rassuf, let me explain," Abu Ali interrupted. "You did not think that a minced version of swearing was bad, so I thought you wouldn’t mind a minced version of that rotting fish you refused earlier!"

For a moment Rassuf stood, dumbfounded, and then he began to laugh.

"How foolish I was! I promise never to use a minced oath again! —Now may I have my real dinner?"