Simon loves to have his ears rub, and when donkeys are happy, their lips quiver. Maria took a video of me rubbing Simon’s ears this morning, when the sun came out, and I honestly can’t believe I’m putting it up on YouTube. I blame her for this. Still, she argues – persuasively – that it’s hypocritical to take photos of other people loving animals, and not showing my own. So point taken. Maria is a powerful personal, and loving her has changed me, obviously. It has also rattled me. This just is not something I would ever have done in my life.

Simon has also helped open me up, as have all the animals. It has been and is a long process, which shows just how closed up I was and am. Anyway, I’m just closing my eyes and putting this up. It is the truth, and it does reflect how I feel, and isn’t that a writer’s job? Love is an important thing. You don’t see much about real love on the news, in Congress, on talk shows. Love is the engine. It powers everything, really, and when you lose sight of it, you are lost.

Lord.