🎵 Aesop’s Fables Month: The Man, The Boy, and The Donkey 👴🏻👱🏻♂️🫏
“I’m trying to stop people-pleasing—is that okay with you?!”
I stumbled across that hilarious meme on Pinterest, and after laughing out loud, the quiet truth behind it hit home, so I pinned it. It captures the exhausting paradox of trying to make ourselves feel successful by trying to make everyone else happy. The habit runs so deep that even when we finally muster the courage to break free from seeking everyone’s approval, our immediate impulse is still to check the room and ask: “Did I do that right? Are you still happy with me?”
Living to satisfy the crowd is an impossible, moving target. Shifting opinions swirl like the wind, and when we let public consensus hold the reins of our lives, we quickly become anxious pack mules carrying burdens God never asked us to shoulder.
The Classic Fable Retold
Aesop captured this ridiculous trap centuries ago in his classic fable of an elderly father and his young son traveling down a dusty road with their donkey. Desiring only to reach the market peacefully, they begin their journey with the father riding while the boy leads the beast. But the moment they pass a group of townsfolk by a well, the unsolicited critiques begin.
“Look at that selfish old man,” the crowd jeers, pointing accusing fingers. “Lounging in comfort while his poor young boy trudges through the dust!”
Embarrassed and determined to make things right, the father dismounts and places the boy on the donkey’s back while he walks alongside. But just down the road, a woman steps out of her doorway, wagging her finger in sharp rebuke: “Shame on that lazy boy, riding high while his gray-haired elder wears out his weary feet!”
Desperate to satisfy both critics, father and son cram together onto the donkey’s back. Yet the next passersby throw up their hands in mock horror, openly ridiculing the absurdity of two riders overburdening a poor beast. Someone even says, “They should not make the donkey carry all their goods and both of them. Rather, they should carry the donkey.”
Driven to total absurdity by their attempts to silence every critic, they both dismount and try to carry the donkey between them. When they reach a narrow wooden footbridge spanning a rocky stream, the father and son lose their footing, and it terrifies the donkey. It thrashes wildly out of their grip, sending all their belongings flying as it bucks and tumbles over the railing into the churning water below. In striving to satisfy everyone, they lose everything.
Whose Approval Are We Seeking?
That bridge mishap is an example of what can happen when we trade God’s direction for human ideas and approval. But when we are caring people with a lot of empathy, it’s very easy to let that steer us into being like the characters in the story. We desperately want to please others simply because we want them to be happy. But we often mistake our own positions in the happiness of others. Here are some quotes about people-pleasing…
“There is only one way to avoid criticism: do nothing, say nothing, and be nothing.” – Aristotle
“Care about what other people think, and you will always be their prisoner.” – Lao Tzu
“Pleasing everybody is never a responsibility. If they like you for who you are, good. If not, it’s their problem not yours.” – Unknown
“People pleasing hides the real you” – Unknown
“Let your light shine today, and let your personality blossom, too. You don’t have to be a people-pleaser, just a people-lover.” – Beth Moore
The Apostle Paul understood that navigating cultural pressure, legalistic critiques, and the shifting demands of the crowd is entirely incompatible with genuine discipleship.
Galatians 1:10 (B.S.B.)
10 Am I now seeking the approval of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.
And biblical wisdom says it this way:
Proverbs 29:25 (B.S.B.)
25 The fear of man is a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is set securely on high.
When we surrender to the fear of man, we tie ourselves in knots and cross precarious bridges just to avoid someone’s scowl. But when our ears are tuned exclusively to the Father’s voice, the noise of the crowd fades into the background, and we can finally walk peacefully along the road He prepared for us.
John 10:27 (B.S.B.)
27 My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me.
Singing for the Audience of One
Breaking free from the exhausting cycle of crowd-pleasing requires a deliberate choice of allegiance. When we stop frantically adjusting our lives to appease every passerby along the road, we discover the quiet freedom of walking for the only approval that truly counts.
The timeless hymn “I Have Decided to Follow Jesus” strips away the need for human consensus with a single, unbending line: “Though none go with me, still I will follow.” It reminds us that following Christ often means leaving the crowd and their fickle applause behind. Though I’ve shared the song before, this one includes an amazing missionary story.
I found this version of “An Audience of One” by Greg Ferguson with amazing lyrics like I want to hear “well done” from an Audience of One. Totally anthem worthy song I’d never heard before. It tackles that same truth from the perspective of our real purpose. Instead of exhausting ourselves to earn the fleeting approval of the room, our song, our walk, and our obedience are meant for a Single Listener.
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My Colors, Your Colors
Sometimes, I think my mind has an invisible “Energizer Bunny” running overtime with thoughts and ideas. And yet, for this Musably Monday post, I’m struggling to bring just one idea to the page. It’s like trying to decide which digital crayon to use for the Colorfy app pictures.
Of course, for the picture above, I did pick some colors to play with, and I had fun creating patterns. It’s colorful enough for me to be satisfied, but then I found the PicsArt app on my phone and had to further personalize the picture with some creative effects. And then I added one last frame with PhotoStudio. It’s a good thing all these apps are free because otherwise, it could cost a pretty penny just to make something fit my eclectic tastes.
Having our own thoughts and ideas about a subject is what makes each of us individual. As long as our individual ideas do not disrespect Our Creator, or bring harm to others, they should be fine to entertain. If you want to make orange leaves with purple outlines, there’s no harm in that. This was my first digital coloring image, so maybe that’s why I felt the need to stay with traditional colors on the leaves, but I did enjoy throwing extra creativity into the flowers.
Speaking of individuality, yesterday hubby and I decided to rewatch Babe on Netflix. (Yes, the movie about the cute little pig.) We hadn’t seen it in over 10 years, and I had forgotten how much I really liked it. The idea that a pig could suddenly become valuable as a “sheep-pig” is way off the beaten path. But, not only does the pig do a fine job at leading the sheep, he also protects them and becomes their friend. If you haven’t seen it in awhile, I recommend pulling out your copy and popping it into the DVD player. If you don’t have a copy, it’s available for rent or purchase on Amazon Video.
As I watched the movie, one of the hardest parts for me was when the frenzied crowd ranted against the farmer and his pig. They had no idea what that little pig could do, and they raged against the idea of anything different than the normal sheepdogs they were used to. But Farmer Hoggett stood his ground, seemingly undaunted by the criticisms of all those around him, because he was confident in what his pig could do. And once the truth was known, even the crowd came around to another way of thinking.
This is a lesson for me. I have always been the odd duck with different thoughts and ideas than most everyone else. But I have also felt driven to fit in. I have bent to please people on many occasions, and it has not turned out so well. I need to remember both the farmer and his pig, and I need to stand in confidence that my ideas and colors are okay even if they don’t match your ideas and colors. As a matter of fact, if you have created any of these digital coloring pages with an app and uploaded it, please include a link in the comments and let me know where I can see your colors.
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