Long ago, an old man and his grandson traveled across the countryside. The old man rode the donkey while his grandson walked alongside holding on to the animal’s halter. This journey was far from pleasurable. They were on their way to the big city market, where they’d try to sell the animal to help with the expenses of the old man and his grandson, who was an orphan.
During their journey, they passed through a village where some people began criticizing them. "What a shame!” they said resentfully as they saw the young boy walking while his grandfather rode on the donkey. "Child Protective Services would definitely put an end to this if they knew! How can he do such a thing? He has no compassion!” they said.
Feeling embarrassed by this situation, the old man promptly swapped places with the boy, who now rode on the donkey while his grandfather walked beside them. "Certainly, now nobody will get upset and criticize us!” he thought.
And so they continued on their journey. But as they came into a new village, they began hearing people criticizing them again. "That’s ridiculous! Poor old man! He should be the one riding the donkey, not the boy. What has this world come to? Nobody respects the elderly anymore.” were the comments they heard.
Confused and without knowing what else to do, the poor old man had another idea. He sat on the donkey along with the boy and continued on their journey.
In the next village, the comments were even worse. "What an absurd! Poor, poor donkey, he has to carry those two heavy guys! The animal humane society should do something about this!” they said.
Moral of the story: It’s impossible to please everyone. Those who insist on trying will certainly end up frustrated with life.
God has given us faith so that we can each walk according to it and not according to the opinion of others!
