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 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 and was astonished at what he saw. With
every 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 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!
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
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!
