I am about halfway through reading "Tibetan Peach Pie", a memoir by Tom Robbins. In my personal Pantheon of great writers, Tom Robbins is definitely in my Top 3, not only because of his wicked imagination and sense of humour, or because he is the undisputed King of Simile, but because his books and stories have actually been transformative, they have changed me and my way of thinking once I read them. The first book of his which I read was "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues", which literally turned my way of looking at the world inside-out; it showed me the power of the Female, the strength of the circular, and taught me that a wise writer can somehow weave actual Magick into the pages of a novel. After that, I was hooked.
Since then, I have hungrily scooped up each new book Robbins has written, and each one somehow got inside my mind and pushed outwards, expanding my consciousness, and in some way widened the opening in my mind which allows new thoughts to sneak in. I've always thought that while he is "just a writer", he is a writer who was placed here to somehow teach us something. Or some things.
From "Another Roadside Attraction" I learned that the Church (yes, that Church), is actually a huge, tax-free Multi-National Corporation which must be watched very closely, and that the easiest way to walk through the rain is not to fight it.
From "Still Life with Woodpecker" I learned of the power of Redheads, and the mysteries held within the Camel cigarette pack.
From "Jitterbug Perfume" I learned of the power of the beet, and that smell is 90% of love.
From "Skinny Legs and All" I learned the truth about Jezebel, that time is relative, and that a painted stick and a can o' beans can have a life and even a quest. I learned that a character called Turn Around Norman holds the key to understanding it all.
"Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas" taught me about the power of the Belt of Orion, and especially of Sirius the Dog Star.
Reading "Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates" showed me that curses are real, but they only have power if you allow them to.
And "Villa Incognito" taught me that you can read an entire novel, and ten years later have no earthly idea what the hell it was about.
So now, I am reading the author's own stories about his own life. And he is referring to himself as an "octogenarian". So, this Merry Prankster, this Trickster God of Novelists, the man who, in my mind, drops acid and holds drumming circles at Burning Man, has grown old, like my dad, like me, like any other ordinary mortal. I'm sure he's still got a few things he can teach me.