Saturday, September 29, 2007

The Apocalypse of Fletcher, ch. 5

A serious young man found the conflicts of twenty-first century America confusing. He went to many people seeking a way of resolving within him the discords that troubled him, but he remained troubled.

One night in a coffee house, Fletcher said to him, "Go to the dilapidated mansion you will find at this address which I have written down for you. Do not speak to those who live there. You must remain silent until the moonrise tomorrow night. Go to the large room on the right of the main hallway, sit in the lotus position on top of the rubble in the northeast corner, face the corner, and meditate."

He did just as Fletcher instructed. His meditation was frequently interrupted by worries. He worried whether or not the rest of the plumbing fixtures would fall from the second floor bathroom to join the pipes and other trash he was sitting on. He worried how he would know when the moon rose on the next night. He worried about what the people who walked through the room said about him.

His worrying and meditation were disturbed when, as if in a test of his faith, fecal matter fell from the second floor onto him. At that time, two people walked into the room. The first asked the second who the man was sitting there was. The second replied, "Some say he is a holy man. Others say he is an idiot." Hearing this, the man was enlightened.

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