Minimalist Meditation

By D. Harlan Wilson

There is a blanket on the couch. The blanket is hairy. It also has a mouth containing a tongue and several sharp fangs. Some people think it is an animal. Every now and then a person will sit down on the couch and pet it or try to feed it a piece of meat. The blanket never reacts. It doesn’t go “Mmm” when it is petted, and it doesn’t gobble up victuals that are offered to it. It is a lazy blanket and all it really wants to do is loaf and take up space and contemplate its existence. “I loaf,” it thinks, “therefore I am.” This and numerous other minimalist meditations occupy the consciousness of the blanket for 96.2% of its waking life. It is safe to assume that the other 3.8% of its time is spent thinking about breasts.