The Humble Donkey
Two of our most celebrated events in the Christian calendar involve one of my favourite creatures; the lowly donkey. The Christmas story recounts the tale of Mary arriving in Bethlehem on a donkey, the only method of transport in that day. I assume her partner, Joseph was relegated to Shanks’s pony, under the circumstances, but his input to the story didn’t drain him anyway. Many centuries later, it might have been Mary who was downgraded to the side car, but let’s keep to the story. Indeed, we might review the Christmas story a little less romantically, if Mary had zoomed up to a B&B in a Tesla, which would have ruined the children’s nativity plays. So, if records are correct, this was the beginning of Jesus’ life.
At the other end of his life, he once again mysteriously acquired an unemployed donkey, to ride into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. Again, the donkey was his preferred method of transport, being a peaceful and sincere beast, who fell instantly under his God-fearing spell. Donkeys are reputed to be quite obstinate animals, until one has earned their trust. In this case, the donkey must have been warmly influenced by a special charisma emanating from the Son of God, to have allowed this previously unknown man to mount him, and to steer him unerringly through the throng.
Donkeys are in fact extremely intelligent and affectionate beings and enjoy the company of humans who treat them with love and respect. They are more or less like long-eared dogs in their affection towards their keepers and as an added bonus, they are so low-maintenance. Some people even keep them to guard their sheep. A donkey can mutate to a savage beast in defending his charges against foxes. There is a beautiful, orphaned donkey called ‘Walter’ who lives with his human family in Oatman, Arizona, USA. On wintry nights or in bad weather, he shares the living room with his 4 German shepherd siblings, and he has a vast following of fans on Facebook, when he goes walking most evenings.
However, not all donkeys are privileged to enjoy Walter’s sunny life. There is a large collection of donkeys in Mijas, Costa del Sol in Spain. Most of them are destined to stand around for hours on end in the gruelling summer heat, on the streets of Mijas, with no access to food or water. People pay to sit on them and take rides around the town. Now a normal, healthy donkey used to take children for rides at fairs. But some of their more voluminous adult ‘clients’ even want to hike a child on board with them too. The little men who are in charge of this racket will stop at nothing to earn money at the expense of these dozens of enslaved burros. A British organisation has been fighting for years to try and force better conditions for these poor animals, but it has been impossible to improve their lives a lot. I have been told that older donkeys are finally allowed to pension off to a better life, but how old is an old donkey under these circumstances?
A few years ago, we went down below the road level in the main square of Mijas, where at least another 40 or 50 donkeys were being kept. They were tied up tightly with filthy rope and had no chance to lie down. Two of them on the end were forced to stand in the full glare of the sun. We found a bucket and a tap and filled it up with water to give to the first couple of ‘prisoners’ – a well-needed drink. It didn’t take long for one of the keepers to come downstairs and catch us at it. He started shouting and screaming at us to get out, but the donkey at least had a little respite for a moment. The vision of these poor creatures, exposed to such cruel treatment followed me around for a long time. I would like to think that in a better world, these unfortunate animals could live out their lives in a lush field under the trees, enjoying the life they deserve. Yes – I love donkeys!
Photo: Pexels / Felix Mittermeier