The old farmer set out with a spring in his step, dressed in his best clothes, determined to break from his daily grind and visit his friend in the neighboring village. His donkey waited patiently, as it did every morning, with its head bowed and hooves planted on the familiar dirt path.

After climbing onto the donkey, he felt the gentle rocking motion of its steps and drifted off, lulled by the morning sun and the rhythm of the ride. His thoughts wandered to the good stories and laughter he’d share with his friend, a world away from the endless tending of crops and weeding.

But the donkey, bound by routine, walked the path it had learned by heart. Every day it trotted faithfully to the orchard, carrying the farmer without fail. Today was no exception.

Hours later, the old man stirred awake. His friend’s home was nowhere in sight. Instead, rows of fig trees stretched around him, their branches heavy with fruit—the familiar sight of his own orchard.

“What have you done?” he muttered, jumping off the donkey and glaring at it. “You foolish beast! Today, of all days, I wanted to visit my friend! Yet here we are, stuck in this orchard again.” Grabbing his stick, he struck the donkey in frustration.

But the donkey only blinked, calm as ever. It had brought him here, just as it had done every day, never asking questions, never veering from its master’s path.

The farmer paused, the stick hovering in his hand, as he felt a strange pang of guilt. Here was a creature that knew nothing but obedience and service, and for that, it bore the brunt of his anger. He saw it now: how simple loyalty could be twisted into an expectation, a claim. And the moment it did something different, even out of pure habit, he had lashed out.

Slowly, he lowered the stick and reached out to pat the donkey’s neck. "Perhaps," he murmured, "it’s I who have been foolish, expecting you to change when I never gave you reason to."

As he stood there, the man felt the weight of thousands of years of unspoken understanding between humans and animals. This was loyalty—a devotion as steady as the path beneath their feet, just as true as any promise.

And with a wry smile, he climbed back onto the donkey’s back, accepting that some paths, though familiar, could still offer a lesson or two.