playing catch up

folks, it's been a whirlwind. the birthday celebration is finally over. i have stories to tell, ideas to float, pictures, all kinds of stuff. but time has not allowed me to get it together. i have not abandoned my blog. i am not on hiatus. i can't wait to give you a decent post. but in the meantime, a short proverb, african origin, culture unknown to me:

a man and his son need to make a long journey. they and their donkey set out for the distant town. they pass through their first town and the townspeople grumble: how foolish of them to walk when they could ride the donkey and ease their feet? so the father and son get on the donkey, and are riding this way when they enter the next town. they hear the derision of the townspeople: how cruel of them to put both of their weight on that poor animal - the weight must be killing it! the father, hearing this, gets off the donkey's back, and he and his son continue to travel. in the next town, the people look at the child on the donkey and cluck their tongues. why should that young boy who is full of energy take advantage of the donkey, when his father, an elder, should get the rest? the father and his son switch places. the people in the following village frown their faces - why should the father, who is stronger and heavier, ride the donkey, while his child, who has to take more strides with his shorter legs, is forced to walk beside them?

the moral: you can't please every one. so don't try.