Short Stories

   Suavity

The dad donkey would always tell his son: “your grand father was a suave donkey”

Once his son asked: “dad, how was my grand father that you say he was suave?”

The dad donkey thought for a second and said: “what do suave persons do? Tell me some of their characteristics.”

He said: “they would read so many books”

His dad answered: “your grandfather would read so many books”

He said: “they won’t watch so much TV”

He answered: “he had never watched any TV”

 He said: “they have lots of experience”

He answered: “he had lots of experience in his life”

He said: “suave people know why they are living”

He answered: “he was absolutely this kind”

He asked: “if he was this much suave, so why his name was donkey?”

He said: “I don’t know. But the thing I know is that you are not a true grandchild of that grandfather!!!!! Now what you want to name yourself?

And the little donkey was thinking of a new name!!

  Wild donkey, Tame donkey

The baby donkey asked his mother: “mother, is that right that our ancestors were wild donkeys?”

She said: “shush, yes they were wild donkeys, but don’t let any body knows that, if they know that, they will call us wild donkey too” 

He asked: “what’s the difference between wild donkey and tame donkey?”

She said: “don’t tell any body, wild donkey wont carry burdens!”

He asked: “is that all?!”

She said: “no, it won’t walk when they tell it “Hin””

He asked again: “is that all?!”

She said: “no, he won’t stop when they tell him “hash””

He asked: “is that all?!”

She said: “no, he would bray whenever he wants”

He asked: “is that all?!”

She said: “no, it lives in the jungles and deserts”
suddenly the baby donkey ran away and said: “I’m going to my ancestors, as I wish to be a wild donkey!!”

His mother cried: “hash, hash, hash, where are you going stupid donkey?!”

 But he never stopped and ran and ran till became disappeared!

  Donkey’s championship

 Tow donkeys were racing and the price for the winner was a new panel!!!

The referee of the game was their owner!

Both of them were galloping so fast.

One of them lost its old panel while galloping and the other lost its bridle and they were sweating so hard.

They both arrived to the finish line together and the prize was on the other side of the line.

One of them caught one side of the panel and the other caught the other side.

They were both pulling the new panel and would say: “the new panel is mine”

But suddenly the panel tore up in two pieces!!!

Their owner arrived and gave each a new panel and said: “you are both winners!!” and then he put so many heavy burdens on their back.

Maybe they understood the meaning of championship just then!!

  Dear

All the donkeys got together and unanimously came to conclusion that all of their problems are because of their names! So they said to each others: “we shall find another name for our selves”

Each of them suggests a name but after all they unanimously accept the name dear!

 They would call each other dears and would carry burdens as hard as past and would work as hard as past and would sweat as hard as past!

 The most famous donkey

Once there was a donkey who wanted to be famous. He spent a lot of money, but it was useless and he lost all his money!

Once there was a donkey who wanted to be famous. He went and talked against the king of the donkeys, but it was useless, they arrested him and put him in the jail!

Once there was a donkey who wanted to be famous. He went and praised the king of donkeys every where, but nobody paid attention to him.
Once there was a donkey who wanted to be famous. He went and put his picture every where, but it was useless. They tore up all his pictures.

Once there was a donkey who didn’t want to be famous. He would carry all the burdens they put on his back to avoid himself from being famous.

But this donkey became famous! They copy his picture and put it everywhere. He would say: “I don’t want to be famous. I don’t like fame. Let me carry my burden”

But no one paid attention to his words and at last they choose him as the most famous donkey.

That poor donkey still does not  knows why he is the most famous donkey!

  Provident donkey

Once there was a provident donkey.

He was thinking of when he would not be young any more and his retired ness.

He was scaring of the time that he may lose his importance and situation.

He prepared some full stores and cellars for his senility and retired ness time.

He became old and died and all his will which were tremendous and full of burdens cellars, passed to his children!!!

His children carried burdens to the time they become old, but then they had thousands of cellars for their children as their wills!!!

Next provident donkeys, race after race prepared cellars for the next races and would die then.

Soon there were millions of cellars full of burdens.

And the next provident donkeys would pass these full cellars to the next races and would die then.

But none of those poor, provident donkeys understood who were felling the cellars!

  Heavy burdens

There were two heavy sacks on back of a donkey and he was walking so slowly toward the sun!!!

A passer by horse asked him: “what are you carrying?  How hard you are walking? Is it so heavy?”

The donkey answered: “these are my ambitions which I’m carrying. They are so heavy” and this words brought wonder to the horse, and the donkey passed trough him!!!

A mule arrived to the donkey and asked him: “what is your burden that you are sweating this hard?”

The donkey said: “these are my visions which I’m carrying; they are so heavy, so heavy”

These words made the mule astonished and the donkey passed trough him.

A goat saw the donkey and asked him “what are your burdens that make you breath this hard?” and the donkey answered: “these are my dreams which I tied to my back, what a heavy dreams!!!”

The goat became astonished and the donkey passed through him!!!

A sheep came toward the donkey and asked him: “what are you carrying that stooped your back like this?” and the donkey answered: “these are my happiness, and how heavy they are!!!”

These words astonished the sheep and the donkey walked farer and farer!

Suddenly his leg slipped in the slide of a valley and he slipped and slipped and slipped under his heavy burdens and he capsized in the bottom of the valley!!!

This occurrence ripped the sacks and after that, was thrown in the air black, white, gray and brown cobblestones and the donkey was trying to move under those heavy cobblestones.

After a few minutes tired and without any energy, the donkey looked at the cobblestones and said: “my ambitions, my visions, my dreams, and my happiness; how heavy they were!!!”

He put his head on heavy stones and gazed to the setting sun.

Everywhere there was a talk of a donkey that was carrying his ambitions, visions, dreams and happiness!!

  Permanent destiny

They put burdens as soon as the little donkey starts to walk!

He grew up and they put burdens on his back!

He grew up more and they put burdens on his back!

He became old and they put burdens on his back!

He died and passed away to become free of carrying, but they tied a corpse of a human on his back and told him: “carry this to the other world”

In the other world they told him: “this human was guilty, carry him to the hell!”

The donkey went to the hell to become free of carrying burdens, but they tied some woods on his back!

 Suddenly he shouted and said: “so when I’m going to be free?”

Suddenly a voice echoed in the hell: “you should say no the first time they put burdens on your back! Now you are pronounced to a permanent destiny of carrying wood and must carry wood to perpetuity 

From the book: The donkeys, written by Mohammad Reza Yosefi 

Translated by: M. Kamkar