There once was a little donkey that worked on a very large farm. This donkey was a very hard worker, and was very much appreciated by his master who knew he could count on him do any manner of odd jobs and farm duties.

One day while hard at work, this donkey fell into a deep pit that the farmer had been digging to use as a well. The donkey cried and cried, and the farmer frantically tried to figure out a way to get the donkey out of the deep hole. However the sides were just too unstable to lower someone down with a rope to tie around the donkey, and as the donkey was panicky and thrashing about, the farmer had the additional concern of one of his farm hands being injured and stuck down the hole too.

Finally, with a heavy heart, the farmer decided it was best to bury the donkey and put it out of its misery. So he and several of his farm hands started shoveling dirt back into the pit.

However, after a few minutes of shoveling, the farmer noticed something. The donkey was shaking off the dirt and stomping it into the ground below him. As it dawned on the farmer what was happening, he called the rest of his farm hands to help shovel, and shovel-full after shovel-full of dirt, the donkey stomped it into the ground making the hole shallower by the minute. Soon the well became nearly filled with dirt and the donkey climbed out to the great relief of the farmer and his workers.

The story of the donkey in the well is timeless, and has circulated the internet more than I can even count. Its message is enduring, for many of us, too, have found ourselves stuck in a situation where we just didn’t know how we’d get through. The metaphorical dirt was poured over our heads, and we either got buried by our problems with no hope of rescue, or we shook the dirt from us and pounded it into the ground to rise victorious.

We always have the choice to be victim or victor. So next time it feels as if you are in that well with no chance of being freed, think of the little donkey who refused to accept that his circumstances were beyond his control; he didn’t give up and he didn’t give in, and you don’t have to either!