Just a Donkey

Someone gave me this poem today, this ninth day of Christmas, in response to the donkey on my desk (an Opus Dei mascot).

Just a Little Donkey (by Rita S. Beer)
Just a little donkey, but on my back I bore
The one and only Savior the world was waiting for.
Just a little donkey, but I was strong and proud--
I gladly carried Mary through the chaos of the crowd.
I brought her to a stable where she made a tiny bed...
A place for Baby Jesus to lay His little head.
I pray the world remembers that special Christmas night
When just a little donkey carried Heaven's Precious Light.


The Opus Dei mascot of the donkey is the borrico de noria which is mentioned in The Way 606 and 998.

998 "O blessed perseverance of the donkey that turns the waterwheel! Always the same pace. Always around the same circle. One day after another, every day the same.

"Without that, there would be no ripeness in the fruit, nor blossom in the orchard, nor scent of flowers in the garden.

"Carry this thought to your interior life."

"O Blessed perseverance, most fruitfulful, of the poor waterwheel donkey!: always the same, monotonously, hidden and despised, at his humble pace...,without wanting to know that his perspirations are the aroma of the flower, the beauty of the fruit in season, the cool shade of the trees in the summer heat: all the rich foilage of the orchard, and all of the charm of the garden." (Note from Camino: edicion critico-historico.)