Desmond the donkey was having a rather grumpy day. He worked for a kind gardener, carrying baskets of fresh vegetables to the market. "Oh, my aching back!" Desmond would sigh. "Carrots, cabbages, more carrots! And all I get are the leftover leaves. I wish I had a new master!"

Well, one sunny morning, Desmond's wish came true! The gardener sold him to a potter. "Hee-haw!" thought Desmond. "No more smelly cabbages for me!"

But the potter's work was even harder. Desmond had to carry heavy, sticky clay from the riverbank. Then, he had to carefully carry stacks of finished pots, which were very fragile. If one broke, the potter would shout! "Oh, my hooves!" groaned Desmond. "This clay is so heavy, and these pots are so tricky! I wish, I wish, I wish for another new master!"

And believe it or not, Desmond's wish came true again! The potter sold him to a tanner. When Desmond arrived at the tanner's workshop, his nose twitched. "Phew! What is that funny smell?" he wondered.

The tanner's work was the hardest and smelliest of all. Desmond had to carry heavy bundles of animal skins. He watched the tanner working with these skins, and a little shiver went down Desmond's back. "Oh dear," he whispered to himself, his long ears drooping. "This master works with the skins of animals... like donkeys! My first master, the gardener, wasn't so bad after all. At least he just grew vegetables!"

Desmond sighed a very long, sad sigh. He wished he could go back to carrying carrots and cabbages. Even the leftover leaves seemed like a wonderful feast now.

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