There was once a farmer that had an old mule named Betsy. Betsy was up in age but still worked hard with the farmer six days a week. The farmer and Betsy both rested on Sunday.
One Sunday, the farmer and Betsy were out enjoying a warm spring day when Betsy wandered into an area behind the barn and accidentally slid down into an old water well that was almost ten feet deep.
Old Betsy was stunned, scared, and starting to make noises that old mules make when they slide into a well on a Sunday. The old farmer heard Betsy and soon discovered what happened. He didn’t know what to do. There was no way he could pull Betsy out. He wasn’t sure how bad she might be hurt.
After a few minutes, Betsy stopped making noises. Everything was quiet. The farmer assumed that Betsy had passed. He slowly walked to the barn to get his shovel. He would bury Betsy in that old well.
As he started to shovel, the dirt hit old Betsy’s back. The old mule was still alive and not injured at all. She shook the dirt off her back and lifted her hooves to step up over the dirt. This process was repeated each time the old farmer put a shovel full of dirt into the well.
After about thirty minutes of steady shoveling, the farmer looked down into the well and saw Betsy shaking the dirt off and stepping up. She was now about five feet from the surface. The farmer went back to shoveling and old Betsy just kept shaking it off and stepping up. This process continued until old Betsy stepped out of the well.
There’s a great lesson from old Betsy. Negative comments, discouraging outcomes, uncertain futures, and unfair decisions can have huge impacts on many of us. We can become debilitated, disillusioned, and depressed. Tough times can shut many of us down.
Can we take a lesson from old Betsy and learn to both shake it off and step up? Old Betsy didn’t like the dirt on her, so she got it off and stepped up over it. She didn’t let the dirt bury her. In fact, the dirt intended to bury her was the key to her getting out of that well! The very thing intended to bury her was her answer to life! The key was the response.
The obstacles that you currently face may also be opportunities. Opportunities for you to take that next step forward. Consider these thoughts:
Hard doesn’t mean you aren’t good at it! Don’t stop pursuing something important to you when it gets hard!
Don’t believe everything you think! Sometimes, our mind takes us places that we don’t need to go.
Your deepest pit may be the springboard for your highest platform. The tougher the challenge, the more rewarding the solution.
Don’t sit too long in despair. No one thinks themselves into feeling better. Do something. Get moving. Anything is better than nothing.
Struggling is not failing. Quitting is failing.
Where do you need to shake it off and step up? It’s not enough to just shake it off and hold on to bitterness, anger, or jealousy. You must step up too. Step up and leave those negative feelings behind.
Let’s take a lesson from old Betsy and move toward living an abundant life!
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