It’s been awhile since my last post. With my experiences of late, I thought it would be a great time to jump in with something inspirational. The last six months have had a lot of ups and downs. It started six months ago with my daughter’s wedding. While a joyous occasion, stress is felt nevertheless, hoping all goes well for my daughter and son-in-law on their special day. The day proved to be extra special as it turned out to be my dad’s last family outing. Shortly after the new year, his health declined and in mid-February he passed away from pneumonia. If his failing health and passing were not enough, I also found myself in and out of Urgent Care and ER with my own health issues; was out of work and on disability for 3 weeks; became engaged to the love of my life; and started house hunting for a larger place for our new life together. With all these ups and downs in such a short period of time, I started to wonder whether life would ever calm down. Just as I started to feel as though I would never climb out of this well I found myself falling into… Justin shared the following parable with me. I share it here as I believe it will help many of you out there who also feel as though you have fallen in the well as a result of life’s stresses and can’t figure out how to step out of it.
Donkey in the Well
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 neighbors to come over and help him. They each 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 looked down the well, and was astonished at what he saw. As every shovel of dirt hit his back, the donkey did something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up. As the farmer’s neighbors 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 trotted off.
The Moral: 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 as each of our troubles is a stepping stone. We can get out of the deepest wells just by not stopping, never giving up! Shake it off and take a step up!
Just remember five simple rules to be happy:
- Free your heart from hatred.
- Free your mind from worries.
- Live simply.
- Give more.
- Expect less.
Doing It "The Little Way" 