At the ashram my guru says sea salt is a necessary ingredient for good health. Tofu is a necessary ingredient for supreme health, he adds. Tomatoes are necessary ingredients for remarkable health, he says. Mindfulness, self-realization, and bliss are necessary ingredients for outstanding health, he says and bows as I leave. Sea salt, tofu, and tomatoes are necessary ingredients for my lunch. I feel mindful. I feel self-realized and with a slice and a bite or two of tomato, bliss lifts me on enlightened wings and I fly past the need for necessary ingredients. Wait until I tell my guru.

AJ Atwater

is an abstract painter and literary fiction writer based in Minnesota and Manhattan. Her stories are forthcoming or published in Literary Orphans, PANK, Vestal Review, Crack the Spine, Heavy Feather Review, Cowboy Jamboree, Barely South Review, The Gravity of the Thing, 50-Word Stories, and others.

See more at: www.ajatwater.com.