An old man and a boy were traveling to town with a donkey. At first, the old man was riding the donkey and the boy was walking. When they stopped by a little tavern, the innkeeper critizised the old man: “How can you let the boy walk for so long? That’s inhumane!”
So after their stop they changed and the old man was walking while the boy was riding the donkey. After a few miles a little caravan passed by. Their leader stopped them in their tracks and told the old man: “Hej Lord, you spoil the boy! When he is comfortably riding the donkey he does not learn how to overcome hardships in his life. Better let him walk instead!”
So the old man decided that they both should walk. They were walking alongside the donkey when from behind a fast horseman approached them. “You guys, you are so slow, it’s ridiculous. You are blocking the road, walking all three! Use your donkey to ride, that makes much more sense!”.
The old man thought to himself, well why not, we probably could both ride his back. So they climbed the donkey and continued their journey riding the donkey. But soon the donkey did not like the heavy load and stubbornly stopped walking. They slipped from his back and stroke his head and ears to make him move again.
The donkey did not react. No matter what they did, he just would not put another foot forward. So they stood there not knowing what to do. They could leave the donkey where they were. But he would run away soon or someone would steal the animal. The old man could leave the boy out here with the donkey, but then both were in danger, the boy and the animal. As another option, he himself could stay with the donkey and the boy could walk alone to town. But once in town the boy would probably get lost and be an easy target for street robbers.
So he decided they best carry the donkey. That’s what they did. They both carried the animal, weighing hundreds of pounds. Once they saw the town gates they were too exhausted to enter an pass the gates. They were sitting outside feeling weak and tired beyond words, both being angry on the stubborn animal.
The old man finally turned to the boy: “I hope one day you will be much smarter than the fool I proofed to be. I, myself have been a donkey here! I tried to please everyone. And the result is exhaustion, emptiness and frustration. I forgot for a moment that that’s always the case when we try to do as others wish us to do. Never do that. Learn from my mistake and the journey has not been in vain.”
I hope you like my little story.
There is nothing more empowering than doing things your way.
Even when you fail. Your gain then is wisdom.
All the best,
thank you for reading,
Anselma
– Making mistakes is normal.
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Nikolaus Maler is principal bassoonist at the Rheinische Philharmonie Koblenz and holds a position as professor for bassoon at the Musikhochschule Nürnberg, Germany. His YouTube Channel „Fagottmusik“ is reaching a large fan community. Prof. Maler is known for his exceptionally wide repertoire, including contemporary rarities. Quite a few pieces have been dedicated to him in the past and he wholeheartedly supports young musicians and engages in educating the ambitious bassoon youth.
The other day I read about a guy, who gave his employees T-Shirts that say TGIM.
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Fall is coming and with it some new opportunities.
When I was in my teens, friends introduced me to a lady. I admired her for her wisdom. She became my beloved mentor. From an early age on, I liked to pick some heroes and tried to learn from these people. Instead of reading fantasy novels I bought biographies and studied how people with outstanding character and strength navigated their personal challenges.
When I was a student, we had an audition training with a timpanist. He patiently listened to our bassoon Mozarts and excerpts, thought about what to say and finally told us:
