Page 179 - The Book of Rumi

How is it fair that these horses should live in such luxury and I be demeaned
to such misery?”
The donkey rambled on and on for quite some time, feeling utterly sorry
for himself, when all of a sudden, he heard a loud trumpet blowing outside.
A war had broken out, and the trumpet was announcing it. In the blink of an
eye, soldiers amassed inside the stable and began saddling up the Arabians,
who were in fact war horses. Soon, the donkey found himself all alone in the
grand stable, wondering what had just happened.
The next morning, the horses stumbled back, covered with deep cuts

and arrows still wedged in their flesh, their legs loosely bandaged. A team of
veterinarians arrived on the scene; they tried their best to tend to the wounds,
hoping not to cause more harm to the sultan’s valuable steeds.
“Oh God, forgive me!” prayed the donkey, beside himself with embar-
rassment for his earlier self-pity. “I’m content with my poverty; at least I’ve
got security! I’ll gladly exchange the temporary comfort of these stables for my
former despicable lifestyle any day!”
The donkey was relieved to be reunited the following week with his old,
cruel owner, knowing now that nothing truly is as it seems.

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