The butcher and the painter

A butcher and a painter lived next door to each other. They had lived in peace for many years, but at some point, they started having problems with each other. It started when the butcher made a complaint to the painter about his noisy dog that wouldn't stop barking.

However, when the complaint became constant, the painter made it known to the pork butcher that he also had been enduring nuisance from him but never complained. Branches from his trees were growing over to his own territory, attracting unwanted insects and shedding their leaves all over his garden.
"You don't expect me to cut down my tree, do you? Just do away with your dog and stop being unreasonable!". the pork butcher brawled.

One day, the butcher marched into the painter's compound and started throwing insults and raining abuses on the him. He said a lot of hurtful things, called him a coward and blamed him for the death of his wife. He wouldn't stop cussing him.

However, the painter remained totally calm and undisturbed, no matter what the butcher said to him. He couldn't bring himself to do anything other than ignore him. The pork butcher kept on insulting him and his family.

Shortly after the butcher had left, another neighbour who had witnessed the whole thing, approached the painter and asked him.
"Why didn't you return the insults? Come on, there are things you could have used on him to shut him down. We all know he once beat his pregnant wife until she had a miscarriage. Also, he spent many years studying law in Japan, but ended up becoming a local butcher. You could have insulted him with these things and more".

The painter asked him.
"When you wrestle with a pig in the mud, what happens?".

The neighbour replied.
"Of course, you both get dirty".

Then the painter smiled and said.
"Good. And when you both get dirty, the pig likes it, doesn't it? Listen, if someone insults you, and you insult him back, then you also fall into his category as both of you are exactly the same. If someone goes around throwing garbage all over the place, and you join him in throwing garbage, it means there are two mad people. We should never give people the chance to bring us down to their level? We should never play and wrestle in the mud with people who really like the mud? When someone insults you, you should understand that they do so because of their own insecurities and inadequacies in life. We should silently distance ourselves from such people and understand that it doesn't worth our time and energy. Acknowledgement of a bully only gives them power, and you don't want to give them that power.