Four medical interns, a pediatrician, a psychiatrist, a surgeon and an ob/gyn, were friends. Once, when watching a football game, they made an extravagant wager. The pediatric intern won. Each of the others owed her a thousand dollars.

She laughed and said, "I know none of us has that kind of money now, but I'm sure it will be small change when we're out in private practice. You don't have to pay me now, but if I die before you, I expect each of you to throw a thousand dollars in my coffin."

As it happened, she did indeed precede the other three to her eternal reward. The others greeted each other at the funeral. The psychiatrist and the ob/gyn each had a successful private practice. The surgeon had left clinical care to become the medical director of a managed care company. They remembered their bet long ago. The psychiatrist and the ob/gyn each tossed a thousand dollars cash into the coffin. The managed care physician then removed the cash and put in a check for three thousand dollars.