The Man, His Son and the Donkey
Once upon a time, in a peaceful town embraced by fragrant pine forests, there lived an old peasant and his little son. This modest family, who earned their living honestly, quietly handled all their work with the help of their faithful and gentle donkey. On a brightly gleaming morning, accompanied by cheerful birdsong, they set out on a long journey toward the market of the town. While the sunlight lit up the golden fields, the father and the son held the rein of their donkey and began to walk merrily. Before long they met a few merchants who were resting at the spring beside the road. One of the merchants, laughing with a mocking air, said that they were astonished at this foolish man who walked while a strong mount was beneath him.
Ashamed by this criticism, the old man gently lifted his son and seated him on the soft saddle of the donkey. But after they had gone on for a while, an old woman who was working in the nearby field began to grumble. When the woman saw that the young and sturdy boy sat comfortably while he made his aged father walk on the dusty road, she reproached him. The embarrassed father took his son down and settled himself on the back of the donkey. As they drew near the village square, this time young girls who were carrying water stopped them. The girls said that the cruel father thought of his own comfort while he wore out his little child in the scorching heat.
The helpless man, who did not know what to do, decided to take his son behind him as well and to continue the journey together. Just as they reached the entrance of the bridge, the villagers who surrounded them cried out that this load was a great torment for the animal. The man, weary of always acting according to the words of others, understood at last that whatever he did he could not please people. The wise father, who turned to his son and smiled, got down from the donkey and advised that they must not stray from the road they themselves knew to be right. From that day on, the father and the son listened not to the words of others, but only to the voice of their own conscience and their own reason. Whoever tries to please everyone at the same time, in the end loses his own mind and his own road. The man who looks at the mouth of others ends up wearing a sack.