The doctor handed the elderly man a small jar and calmly instructed him to take it home and bring back a sample the next day. When the man returned, the doctor noticed immediately that the jar was still completely empty. Confused, he asked what had happened. The old man sighed and explained that he had tried opening it himself with his right hand, then his left, but had no luck. Not wanting to give up, he asked his wife to try as well. She twisted and turned it every way she could think of, but the lid still refused to budge.

Determined to solve the problem, the couple even asked their neighbor Arleen for help. She tried using every bit of strength she had, experimenting with different grips and angles, yet the jar remained stubbornly sealed. By this point, the doctor was wide-eyed and shocked, especially at the idea of involving the neighbor. Before he could say much more, the old man calmly added, “So anyway, doc, we figured the real problem is that this jar is way too tight.”