Of all the animals I have lived with and known, the donkeys are by far the wisest. Even the border collie, reputed to be so intelligent, will do astonishingly stupid and reckless things in the service of his or her work – like try and herd snow plows, tunnel through snow. The donkey, on the other hand, knows how to care care of himself. You rarely see snow or ice built up on a donkey’s back, they do not wander into the snow like sheep looking for forage, they stick to their shelter and wait for humans to come and bring them food and water. If they get bored, they gnaw on the barn or chew on tires. As Red and Maria and I stagger around the farm in the cold and snow, shoveling and scraping the donkeys are our Greek Chorus, looking in bemused and slightly concerned, as if to say “who are the donkeys now?”