Lesson45 The Parable of the Mule
Once there was a farmer who owned an old mule. One day the mule fell into the farmer's well. After carefully assessing the situation, the farmer sympathized with the mule, but decided that neither the mule nor the well was worth the trouble of saving. Instead, he called his neighbours together, told them what had happened and enlisted them to help haul dirt to bury the old mule in the well and put him out of his misery.
　　Initially, the old mule was hysterical. But as the farmer and his neighbours continued shovelling and the dirt hit his back, a thought struck him. It dawned on him that every time a shovel load of dirt landed on his back he could shake it off and step up. This he did, blow after blow.
"Shake it off and step up... shake it off and step up... shake it off and step up!" He repeated this to encourage himself.　　
No matter how painful the blows, or how distressing the situation seemed, the old mule just kept right on shaking it off and stepping up.
It wasn't long before the old mule, battered and exhausted, stepped triumphantly over the wall of that well! What seemed like a burial actually saved him...all because of the manner in which the mule handled his adversity.
　　That's life. If we face our problems and respond to them positively, and refuse to give in to panic, bitterness, or self-pity ...The adversities that come along to bury us usually have within them real potential to benefit us.

haul 　　　　　　拖拉, 拖运
hysterical 　　 歇斯底里的, 异常兴奋的

骡子的寓言
从前，农夫有一头骡子。一天，骡子掉进了农夫的井里。仔细估量了形势后，农夫虽然很同情骡子，他还是判定不管是骡子还是井都不值得挽救了。他把邻居们召集起来，告诉了他们所发生的一切，并要他们帮忙运土把老骡子埋在井里，使它不再痛苦。
开始，老骡子有点歇斯底里。但是当农夫和他的邻居们继续铲土并且土不断地打在骡子背上的时候，骡子突然想到了一个主意。他意识到，他可以把落在背上的每一锨土抖下来，踩在脚下，自己就可以站高一点。他这样做了，土一锨锨的砸下来。
“抖下来，站高一点...抖下来，站高一点...抖下来，站高一点！”他不断地重复着来激励自己。
不管土打在背上有多痛，不管形势是多么令人痛苦，老骡子坚持不懈地把土抖下来，站高一点。
没过多久，遍体鳞伤、精疲力尽的老骡子成功地从井里走了出来。看似葬礼的一件事居然救了他，这都是因为他以一种不同的方式来应对苦难。
这就是生活。如果我们能面对我们的问题并以积极的态度来应对，而不屈服于惊慌、悲伤或者自怜...
我们其实可以从看起来会埋葬我们的苦难中受益。