Enlightenment   When they got to the part about enlightenment, I knew I wanted it — extinction of desire, I wanted that too. White   lies, of course, but they just might pave the way to Truth, or to the Way itself, the right approach to heaven. So I sat all day,   med-i-tat-ing, watching my breath — not jinxing myself with self. A small price to pay for one more merit badge, one more brass ring.     © Michael Fleming Brattleboro, Vermont March 2021