A donkey named Perry

I am sure you already know about BOL Park.

But I am always the last person to find out about things. And I only have myself to blame. I just get so attached and loyal to places and things I already know and love, I don't even notice new things. And that makes me a "Late Adopter" according to the Internet industry, and something probably quite worse if I were to ask a shrink. The only exception to this rule is in the case of cafés and restaurants and bakeries and wine bars and cozy hotel lobbies, where I am a devout seeker of the latest and the greatest.

Back to BOL Park though.

Six or so years ago I was walking on a path near my home and I ran into a friend jogging. After a quick greeting she told me that if I continued on this path a little ways, it would turn into a beautiful walkway and I will see two donkeys. But when a mile or so down the road I didn't see a beautiful walkway or any sign of donkeys, I walked back, sure that I had misunderstood my friend who was in a rush to get back to her jog.

But the idea of donkeys in our neck of the woods had always stayed in the back of my mind.

A year or so ago, Mr. Urban started taking the UrbanToddler on bike rides. Each time they returned, my little girl said something about a donkey. I smiled and nodded, but because I was still preoccupied with the little time I had just had to myself sipping coffee at Peet's, I never connected the dots or investigated further.

This winter, since Mr. Urban has begun training for his half marathon, he has been gushing about all the new places in our area that he has been running. Places, we (I) had no idea about. Places he insists on showing us on Sundays. And with all the excitement he puts out, how can I say no?

A couple of Sundays ago, he took us for a walk on BOL Park's foot path, just a few minutes drive from our home. I loved the trail from the start with its little bridges and tall, old trees. We hadn't walked a half mile yet that under a huge flowy Eucalyptus tree I saw two cute donkeys. I soon learned they were Niner and Perry. And if Oprah was there she would have called this an Aha! moment, where my life and the life of 2 donkeys in my neighborhood came full circle.

We stopped for a minute to say hello. And I told Mr. Urban that I just fell in love with the shorter donkey with the saggy belly. And that he somehow looked familiar to me. A sheet on the gate told us that Perry and Niner were beloved members of the community and were cared for on a daily basis by neighbors and volunteers.

Since that day, I have been on many walks on this trail. I enjoy walking the trail and visiting Perry (the shorter and cuter one). And on one of these visits, I learned from a volunteer that happened to be there, that Perry who is a miniature donkey, is the model for the "Donkey" from the movie Shrek. But apparently he didn't have a good agent, and didn't get a lucrative contract or even a mention in the movie's credits. Now that Perry is trying to retire, like most Americans, his retirement savings are sadly insufficient.

But still. That Perry keeps his chin up and lives a beautiful life with his friend Niner under a lovely Eucalyptus tree....

(If you like to learn more about Perry and Niner or to help make their lives lovelier, feel free to visit their site.)

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