The Donkey

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Received this in an e-mail from my sister today.

One day a farmer's donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally, he decided the animal was old, and the well needed to be covered up anyway; it just wasn't worth it to retrieve the donkey.

He invited all his neighbours to come over and help him. They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realized what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone's amazement he quieted down.

A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well. He was astonished at what he saw. With each shovel of dirt that hit his back, the donkey was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up.

As the farmer's neighbours continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and happily trotted off!

Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The trick to getting out of the well is to shake it off and take a step up. Each of our troubles is a steppingstone. We can get out of the deepest wells just by not stopping, never giving up! Shake it off and take a step up.

Image taken from here.

Comments

my imperfect offering said…
hee hee Funny picture! :)
June 26, 2006 3:37 PM
Lunafish said…
Good story. Great photo. I love donkeys, hard-headed little creatures.
June 26, 2006 5:10 PM
Colleen said…
Great story and a well timed one for me. I need to find my stepping stone in life.
June 26, 2006 5:27 PM
ghee said…
what a good read in the morning,Richard..This is so inspiring!

Happy Tuesday!
June 26, 2006 6:27 PM
Richard said…
MIO: clearly a case of marketing overselling what engineering made.

lunafish: they also make good salami (if my grandmother is to be believed).

colleen: It is always easy to give advice or platitudes or littel affirmations. But, finding that littel spring of hope, of faith and of confidence inside us is hard. Sometimes we don't see it. But, the trick is just to persevere - which is what the little donkey did.

ghee: Glad to inspire you! Hope you have a great day!
June 26, 2006 7:04 PM
John14:6 said…
Amen to that!
June 27, 2006 9:49 AM
vina said…
this is inspiring tito richard. i'll remember this - just shake the dirt off and move on.
June 27, 2006 10:23 AM
Kay said…
Hi Richard

However I think likewise..donkeys are known to be a little dumb..so dont end up like a dumb donkey..

The donkey in the story likewise is intelligent enuff to realize dat hope is there for 'him' to get out..not everyone is dat lucky I think..

No matter how much dirt u shake off..there are still some stains on it that had to be removed permanently.
June 27, 2006 12:18 PM
Richard said…
mum2one: glad you agree

vina: no matter how hopeless something seems, we always need to move forward, even if it seems pointless at first.

sassy: while it is true that we can never shake off all the dirt that is dumped on us, we need to remember not to let it bury us.
June 30, 2006 8:37 AM
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