One day a farmer's donkey fell into an abandoned well. The animal cried piteously（可怜地） for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally, he decided1 the animal was too old and the well needed to be covered up anyway; so it just wasn't worth it to him to try to retrieve2 the donkey.
He invited all his neighbors to come over and help him. They each grabbed a shovel3 and began to shovel dirt into the well. Realizing what was happening, the donkey at first cried and wailed4 horribly.
Then, a few shovel-fulls later, he quieted down completely. The farmer peered down into the well, and was astounded5 by what he saw. With every shovel-full of dirt that hit his back, the donkey would shake it off and take a step up on the new layer of dirt.
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, the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and trotted6 off, to the shock and astonishment7 of everyone.
Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The trick to getting out of the well is to stop wailing8, and not let the dirt bury you, but to shake it off and take a step up. Each one 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.
