Boise, Idaho is a bustling metropolis. Over 225,000 people call Boise home. Boise was once my home. When I moved there in 1989, the population was a bit over 125,000 residents. Boise is growing. In 1989, the city had five major high schools. Now there are seven, not including private schools. The two standout high schools for years were Boise High School and Borah High School. Boise High is nationally ranked for academic performance. Borah High is a sports powerhouse, claiming dozens of state championships in both football and basketball. They are and have always been rivals.

I raised my three children in Boise. All went to and graduated from Boise High School. As a parent and an outsider to the high school life, I felt the rivalry between Boise and Borah High Schools. When, in 2005, my daughter Janie had an English assignment to write a fable, I joined in the fun and helped bolster the rivalry.

Janie came home from school one afternoon, and after dinner, started working on her homework. She told me about the fable assignment. I helped with a few ideas and then she got busy and wrote her fable. I was bored and interested in the assignment. I wrote my own, signed it “Anonymous” and asked her to turn it in with hers. As far as I know, she never did. Here for the first time in print is my fable.

The Goat and the Donkey

Many years ago, a goat and a donkey met while traveling across Oregon. They were both heading to Idaho to start new lives. As they walked across the high desert plains of Eastern Oregon, they shared their hopes and desires for their new lives in a new state.

The goat started the conversation. “When I get to Idaho, I am heading to Boise.” the goat exclaimed.

“Why Boise?” asked the donkey.

“I want much out of life and feel Boise is the place for me. I want a good education. Maybe I’ll go to college. After that, I’ll land a good job. I also want to find the right mate, get married, and have children. Boise has all I need to achieve my dreams.”

The donkey responded. “I’m more of an adventurer. Settling down can wait. I want to enjoy the beauty of the great Idaho outdoors. The first thing I will do is climb Borah Peak. At over 12,000 feet, it’s the tallest mountain in the state. I’ll summit the mountain and then look for more adventures in the Gem State.”

When they arrived at the border, near Ontario, they wished each other luck and parted ways. The goat headed southeast toward Boise while the donkey due east toward Custer County and Borah Peak.

The goat made it to Boise. Over time, he graduated from school and went on to Boise State University, where he earned a degree in Business. He found a good job, met a wonderful woman, married, and had three lovely children. He found all he hoped to find.

The donkey also made it to his destination. He began his ascent of Borah Peak, hoping to make the summit, where he could look out over the Sawtooth Mountains of Central Idaho. He was close to the summit when he lost his footing, fell off a ledge, and tumbled four-hundred feet to his death.

The moral of the Story is . . .

Smart kids go to Boise. Dumb asses go to Borah.

It took me almost twenty years to write this fable a second time. I showed it to my daughter. She smiled when she read it. When I asked her what she thought, she remarked “Go Braves!”