The Farmer’s Donkey and the Well

One day a farmer, who had mistakenly left the gates to his dry well wide open, heard the cries of his trapped donkey that had accidentally fallen in. As the donkey cried out for help the farmer struggled to figure out what he should do.

After much deliberation, he finally decided it wasn't worth the effort to try to rescue the poor animal; and that the well had long needed to be covered up anyway. So he enlisted the assistance of a few of his neighbors and had them help him bury the well with the donkey still in it.

After agreeing to help, they grabbed shovels and began to shovel in dirt. As soon as the donkey realized what was going on he began to cry hysterically. It wasn’t long after, to the astonishment of everyone, the donkey’s cries became silent.

When the farmer looked down into the well to see how much dirt was still needed to fill it up, he was amazed at what he saw. With each scoop of dirt that everyone had shoveled on top of the donkey, the donkey had shaken it off and climbed on top on it.

As the farmer's neighbors enthusiastically continued to shovel dirt on top of the donkey, the donkey continued to shake it off and take another step.

It wasn’t long before everyone was cheering to see the donkey step out to safety over the edge of the well.

Life is going to throw dirt your way, all sorts of dirt.
The trick is not to cry about it, but to learn to rise above it.

Each of our troubles is a steppingstone in disguise.

Many have gotten out of life's deepest wells by
simply refusing to quit. Never, ever give up!

Remember These 5 Simple Rules to Happiness:

Free your heart of hatred – Forgive.

Free your mind of worries – Most never come true anyway.

Live simply – Keep a humble heart.

Appreciate what you have – Count your blessings.

Give more – Expect less.

Now, here’s how the story ends...

...The donkey later comes back and bites the farmer on the arm. The bite gets infected, and the farmer dies of septic shock. The end.

Moral of Story:

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, watch out that your primary focus isn’t simply to cover your ass — it might just come back to bite you! :)