Finally, he decided that the animal was too old
and as the well needed to be covered up anyway,
it just wasn't worth it to retrieve the donkey.

He invited all his neighbours to come over and help him.
They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel
dirt into the well.

At first, when the donkey realized what was happening,
he started to cry 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 his back and take a step up.

As the farmer's neighbours continued to
shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would
shake it off and take a step up.

Pretty soon, everyone was amazed when 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 hole 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 !