Today’s Wednesday Wisdom story is about that man, his son and their donkey.
One day, a man and his son went to the market. There, they bought a donkey. On the way home, the man let his son ride while he walked alongside, on foot.
After they had travelled some distance, they came across some people who looked at them, laughed and said, “It is a crazy world. Look at that lout of a son comfortably sitting on the donkey and making his old father walk. Look at the poor father sweating!”
The father heard this comment and asked his son to climb off the donkey. He then sat on the donkey’s back, thinking, now everyone will be satisfied.
Shortly, they passed another group of people who, pointing out to the father, said, “Look at that! What kind of weird father makes his poor boy run along on foot while he perches himself comfortably on the donkey?”
Embarrassed, the man stopped the donkey and called out to his son. He invited him to sit on the donkey with him.
They were not far from home when another group of people walking by said, loudly, “This is the height of animal abuse. How shameless of these people to torture that poor donkey. Why can’t they use their own legs to walk and let the donkey rest?”
The man stopped the donkey and got off its back. He advised his son to dismount and they walked on foot, alongside the donkey.
Minutes later, they passed some people who commented, “Whoa. What cheapskates! So typical to buy a donkey and then too stingy to use it.”
Another one chimed in, “He’s probably worried the fur will come off the donkey’s body!”
A third one said, “Ha ha! I wonder who’s the biggest donkey of the three?”
Not to be left out, the fourth one in the group said, “Why don’t they just carry the donkey home, ha, ha!”
Once these people passed, the man and his son stopped. They found a pole and tied the donkey’s feet to it. Then they raised the pole and the donkey to their shoulders.
Everyone who passed them by guffawed their heads off.
♥
Isn’t that extreme? I mean, how far should one go to please everyone?
Try to please everyone, and you will please no one.
We live in a world where seeking others’ approval or worrying what others will think has become second nature.
Some people measure their success or happiness based on the “likes” they can get.
It is nice when we care about people’s reaction when it is justified.
But not using our own brains to think and always trying to gain others’ permission is putting the key to your happiness in someone else’s pocket.
Don’t be afraid to be yourself. It is okay to disagree.
No need to be a people pleaser.
Wednesday Wisdom is a series with short bursts of easy-to-consume wisdom in the form of stories, quotes, anecdotes, and humor.
4 comments
So, so true. I learned very early in life that this was not a path for me but I know a lot of people who are on this path today and have been their whole lives. Too much stress for me. This is it. What you see is what you get with me. If someone doesn’t like it they can move on.
I like this one a lot. Thank you for sharing it! It’s perfect timing, too, because I’m in a cycle of having lots of external (even unasked for) opinions coming in, most of which are in contrast to what my logic, intuitive knowing and heart feel about a specific set of variables and how to move through them. So, this speaks right to my heart and is like a ‘sign from Universe’ confirming to keep on stepping through, ‘my way’.
I remember this story so well! You definitely cannot please everyone and the best lesson I’ve learnt is to be yourself and do what you want as long as you are not intentionally hurting others.
A wonderful thought to ponder over Vidya. You can either be a people-pleaser or be true to yourself. I loved the donkey tale, its funny and thought-provoking!