The Miller, His Son, and the Donkey

A father and his son led their donkey along the road toward town to sell it, walking barefoot beside the animal through a cloud of dust.

Passersby laughed, "How foolish — they have a donkey and don't even ride it!" So the father had his son climb up onto the donkey's back at once.

Then others scolded the boy for being unkind, letting his old father walk. So the father rode instead — until people said he was cruel to leave his son behind. In the end, both climbed onto the donkey together.

Passing through the next village, people scolded them for cruelly overloading the poor little donkey. So the father and son climbed down and carried the donkey across a bridge on a pole instead.

Startled by the strange contraption, the donkey struggled loose and fell into the river below. The father and son could only watch sadly, learning that trying to please everyone may leave you with nothing at all.