Chew the Thorn

“Let me tell you a crazy story about a camel.  Camels have strange behavior. Plodding through the desert for days on end gets them really thirsty.  But there’s no water in sight, which freaks the camel out a bit.  Now the weird part: The thirsty camel walks up to some scraggly shrub brush, sticks his big lips around it, and bites off a thorn.  Smile on his face, eyes staring blankly to the horizon, he begins to chew.  Thorn slices tongue.  Tongue bleeds.  He lets the blood well up inside his mouth and anticipates the pleasure, the wonderful pleasure.  Swallow.  Yes, oh yes–the sensation.  Quench that thirst.” 

—Vraja Kishore Dada

By Nick Baxter