On Keys, Monkeys, and Donkeys

I was so pleased in typing the title to my last entry, that I realized that “monkey” and “donkey” are almost the same word but very different animals.

If I were a conspiracy theorist, I might be able to deduce that the, Democratic party (Donkeys) is attempting to take the keys of our society and teach evolution in the classroom (Monkeys) (Perhaps with the help of the American Medical Association (M.D.).

Or I could note that the word ontological which means primary or foundational begins with the two letters “O” and “N” and that one of the primary or essential truths about human beings are that we have within us the essence of the monkey (We are playful and curious and destructive) and the essence of the donkey (We are stubborn and willful and tenacious).

It is also interesting that to be “on key” is something one would associate with birds and not with either of these animals. It also doesn’t have anything to do with sitting on top of an actual key. If one were to don a key, they would be more likely to put it around their next (or perhaps on one of those elastic extension chains clamped to a belt) than they would be to wear a note. If one were to be mono-keyed, being on key would be stubbornly difficult.

I’m not sure what the key point in this little essay is, but language is an interesting study.