One day a farmer’s donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally he decided the animal was old, and the well needed to be covered up anyway and it just wasn’t worth to retrieve the donkey. So, he decided to bury it!

He invited all his neighbours to come over and help him. They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realized what was happening and cried horribly, then slowly he quieted down till nothing more was heard.

A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well, and was astonished at what he saw. With every shovel of dirt that hit his back, the donkey was doing something amazing! He would shake it off and take a step up!

As the farmer’s neighbours continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and trotted off!

Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The trick to getting out of the well is to shake it off and take a step up. Each of our troubles is a stepping stone. We can get out of the deepest wells by not stopping, never giving up, shaking it off, and taking a step up!

Six years ago, something unforgettable happened. My wife, Liz and I celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary that year. It was a lovely event hosted by our sons for us. Many wonderful friends from the past surprised us with presents and congratulations. Our gift to each other was a driving trip out west. We drove from Ontario into Alberta, then southward into Glacier National Park in Montana and continued to Yellowstone National Park.

It was a cold spring day and the Beartooth Highway had opened for the season just days before. Alongside the road there was still a great amount of remaining snow. The scenery was so impressive that we made numerous stops to record memories with my camera. At almost the highest point of the highway, I stopped at a lookout to catch the amazing views with my wife in the center of my camera lens (镜头) .

There were not many vehicles on the road. Occasionally, cars with energetic young tourists passed by. And then we heard a motorcycle in the distance. The driver of the motorcycle in rags (衣衫褴褛) parked behind our car. A she approached us, his only words were, “Give me your camera and get over there with your wife.” I must admit I felt nervous that we might be robbed where we just created some beautiful memories. Surprisingly, he just took a picture of us, handed back my camera and rode off before we could express our gratitude. The photo he took is one of the most cherished and prized of our trip.

I learned my lesson in the journey. We should never judge a man by his appearance. If the motorcycle driver reads this story and remembers the situation, we would like to say “thank you” to him.

Since I graduated from high school, I’ve worked in the factories surrounding my hometown every summer. However, making the transition (转变) between school and full-time blue-collar work during the break never gets any easier. For a student like me who considers any class before noon to be uncivilized, getting to a factory by 6 o'clock each morning is a torture.

There’re few people as self-confident as a college student who has never been out in the real world. People of my age always seem to overestimate the value of their time and knowledge. In fact, all the classes did not prepare me for my battles with the machine I ran in the plant, which would jam whenever I absent-mindedly put in a part backward or upside down.

The most stressful thing about blue-collar life is knowing your job could disappear overnight. Issues like downsizing (裁员) and overseas relocation always seemed distant to me until my co-worker told me that the unit I was working in would shut down within six months and move to Mexico, where people would work for 60 cents an hour.

After working 12-hour shifts in a factory, the other options have become only too clear. When I’m back at the university, skipping classes and turning in lazy rewrites seem too irresponsible after seeing what I would be doing without school. All the advice and public-service announcements about the value of an education that used to sound stale (out of date) now ring true.

These lessons I’m learning, however valuable, are always tinged (带有) with a sense of guilt. Many people pass their lives in the places I briefly work, spending 30 years where I spend only two months at a time. “The job pays well, but it is very hard,” said one co-worker. “Study hard and keep reading,” she added.

My experiences in the factories have inspired me to make the most of my college years before I enter the real world for good.