Jitterbug Perfume, Week 11, Daffy Yum

JITTERBUG PERFUME
Week 11, Dec. 15 – Dec. 21

Page 72

Wahoo! Kudra has arrived. Our international woman of mystery shows up at the lamasery dressed as a boy. Best quote: "At night in the dark we become our shadows." I think we are always becoming our shadow selves in whatever degree we illuminate our darknesses.I was walking yesterday and came upon a purple bulb with a green stalk lying in the middle of the rain-splattered sidewalk. It looked like a beet. Probably was a flower bulb. But I decided it was a beet and felt blessed by a little synchronicity. If it weren't for self-delusion, lusion would elude me entirely.

Dale
****************************************************************

“If it weren't for self-delusion, lusion would elude me entirely."Good one, Dale!T.R. content; "When a person accepts a broader definition of reality, a broader net is cast upon the waters of fortune." SLAA

Michael
****************************************************************

Best Quote:If it weren't for self-delusion, lusion would elude me entirely.Thanks Dale, I love this!

Gabrielle
****************************************************************

Many, many years ago a stranger approached me on a beach on a Greek Island. We were both naked. Apropos of nothing, he asked me if I'd ever read Jitterbug Perfume. Surprised, I told him that I had and I loved it. We chatted a little about it, then he said that he had approached me because I really reminded him of Kudra.I have never ever been so flattered in my entire life, before or since.Of course, these days, the comparison is way less obvious, being a mere ageing mortal and not a drop of Kudra's perfume in sight....(Thanks for the tips though Julie - will give them both a smell...or start distilling!)

Deena
________________________________________________________________

Page 74—The Blank Page

Hey, Gabrielle thanks. (And thanks to Michael too.)I have to apologize for skipping to the Kudra arrival page. There were blank pages and i got the numbering wrong. That will happen in two more days i guess. Saw a good Jung quote, "Until we make our unconscious conscious it will direct our lives and we will call it fate."

Dale
****************************************************************

So Robbins has a blank page at 74. I wonder what he meant by that? :-)Ode to the Blank PageChorusThe End

Dale
****************************************************************

Maybe the empties are for our interactive entertainment. Intermission. A place where we can get out our crayons and fill in the blanks before the show resumes.

Mary
****************************************************************

Hey Mary and Gabrielle. Blank minds think alike. Which is to say--very creatively. While I was just sitting there non-thinking it was a Zen moment youse (proper plural of you) came up with wonderful possibilities. I also suspect that those blank pages might be when Robbins decided to skip out and play volleyball. : -)

Dale
****************************************************************

On consideration of the blank page:An item of all possibility- --the blank page could become:*a pause to culminate the moment after the last read word [Will you linger over the blank page, letting its infinite possibilities wash over you or, like a greedy piglet searching for something to suck, whisk pat the blank page hungering for more words to read?]*jottings from someone that turn into a poem or novel in the future*a canvas for the artist's interpretation of what was just read
*a blotter to catch a tearso many possibilities a blank pageor maybe that's all it isjust a blank page

Gabrielle
****************************************************************

What a beautiful and inspiring post, Gabrielle. Can you imagine happening upon a Robbins book left by a stranger in some unexpected place...you begin to read, believing as you do in "meant to be," searching for the cryptic message, the word, then discovering a sketch, a drawing or a poem written on a blank page, seemingly just for you? What a gift that would be. Not merely a random act of kindness, but of mystery and delight as well.

Mary
****************************************************************

I haven't made use of the blank pages within the book, but I have a (mostly frowned-upon) tendency to use the blank end pages for notes: writing down the words I encounter and need to look up (fewer of those as I get older), notable quotes from the author (and upon which page they could be Found again when needed), little doodles and sketches. Only if the book is mine, though- don't worry! Actually, I haven't done that in a very long time. I miss it.

Chrome Toaster
________________________________________________________________

Page 76

Ok so NOW, Kudra has arrived. (Hey she looks like Deena!)Alobar suffers what will become famous on Seinfeld as "shrinkage".Was Alobar's attempt to get Kudra to eat a beet, a variation on the apple-eating incident in Christian mythology? Or was it a pomegranate?If we were to cast Alobar, Kudra, Priscilla, V'Lu, Marcel or Pan in a Shakespeare play what parts would they play. I wonder what Alobar was doing all that time between when he met Pan and then started working in a llamasery? Were those his missing years?If you made a jukebox out of beets would it be a mangel-wurlizter? I have totally forgotten the plot of this book. I’m excited to be rereading it.
Dale
_____________________________________________________________________

Page 77

Burn baby burn--even if you don't want to.I find it significant that the most violent scene I've read by Tom Robbins is a description of a religious ceremony (and we read it on a Sunday, a Sunday, a Sunday, and that makes it the best) in which a woman is burned to death on her husband's funeral pyre. I guess a lot of women immolate themselves metaphorically in funereal marriages, or at least look at their husbands and do a slow burn. But actual murder in the name of religion still lives with us today. Honor killings and maimings plague many of the worlds' women. Some women haven't come a long way baby at all--and mostly thanks to men and the religions they keep.And that's the Sunday sermon.As Fark says, "Can't we all just hit a bong?"

Dale
****************************************************************

Amen and thank you, sir. You are an enlightened one. For added ambiance to page 77, may I suggest Leonard Cohen's "Joan of Arc"? "It was deep into his fiery heartHe took the dust of Joan of Arc,And then she clearly understoodIf he was fire, oh then she must be wood.I saw her wince, I saw her cry,I saw the glory in her eye.Myself I long for love and light,But must it come so cruel, and oh so bright?" Here's a YouTube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94f2exI6yF4 Happy Solstice, one and all--the end of the long dark, both metaphorical and actual.

Mary
****************************************************************
Well spoken Dale...I just finished reading, "God is Not Great", a very disturbing book.....but, should be read by everyone. Thanks for the Sunday sermon....JimYou're nobody until somebody bites you........"The glass that is half empty coexists with the glass that is half full."

Lordchesterfield [James Reed]
****************************************************************

At risk of adding fuel to the pyre...A fabulous book I once read about various aspects of feminine Indian culture, both past and present, is called, "May You Be the Mother of One Hundred Sons". One of the chapters describes in detail the practice as well as the religious and economic justifications behindHindu sati ritual -- the Hindu custom of burning a man's living wife on the funeral pyre along with him following his death. A horrific custom -- particularly to us Westerners, I know, (especially when one learns how sati ritual has been justified down through the ages in Hindu cultures for religious and economicreasons). But, this amazing book also goes on to describe the astonishing evolution of women in Indian society.Isn't it fascinating to consider how so many cultures that have been so horrifically repressive to women have also spawned some of the strongest feminist leaders (e.g., Indira Gandhi, Benazir Bhutto, etc.) the world has known? Part of this phenomenon can, no doubt, be attributed to strong cultural traditions/tendencies for these cultures to pass down leadership to familial heirs -- particularly when martyrdom has squelched the fathers, husbands, and brothers of the female leaders who have subsequently come to power afterwords. But, I also believe that, in general, women (and men for that matter) who are strong and brave enough to rise above horrific repression cannot be stopped from greatness. It's like trying to stop a rocket ship in mid orbit once the fuel has been lit.Kinda like those of us women who have climbed, fallen, crawled, fallen again, crawled again, fallen again, and then climbed again on our way out of abusive relationships. Those of us women who have then gone on to not only liberate ourselves but also to help other repressed womenfind their way out of similar chains. Once enchained, some of those chains may never leave us, but neither does our desire or ability to break them and continue soaring. Some of us have even been lucky enough and strong enough and wise enough to trust without fear again. To create a healthier, freer love that enriches both parties. To learn how to create loving partnerships with men who will work with us to create a lasting harmony that is free from repression. These days, I prefer to hum, "C'mon baby light my fire and c'mon baby let me light yours" in my current (and hopefully last) partnership with a man. I am extremely lucky to have found a partner who shares this kind of exchange with me (and in so many important ways). But, it took heating up my internal fire to a high enough and steady enough level to hang on to my connection to myself so that I won't let a man (or my own fears and apprehensions) enchain me again. So that I can honor myself, him, and our relationship enough to not allow repression to enter into the equation. And to be wise and giving enough and respectful enough of his needs and strengths and weaknesses to keep myself from enchaining him as well. It also took finding a man who iswise enough, giving enough, respectful enough, experienced enough, kind enough, and who hates repression and conflict with me enough because of his love and respect for me to make strong efforts at working with me to maintain and build a lasting and deep and hilariousharmony between us. Yes, it took a lot of luck to get here. But it also took a lot of trial and tribulation to get here too. (Don't even get me started about my frightful ups and downs with all those online datingexperiences, all those self-help books and shrinks, self-imposed loneliness, and flat-out disappointments!) But, one thing I'm sure of: All this was necessary for me, at least, to get here. Sometimes, it seems, that others are just lucky and don't have to go through all of the trial, tribulation, and difficulty to find relational harmony that I did. Why this us so, I can't tell you. Karma? Maybe. Maybe in another incarnation I was Hindu and escaped sati by inviting my identical twin sister to my house on the day my husband died, drugging her, and jumping out the window and fleeing toher house just as my husband's brothers came knocking at my door to drag me away to the funeral pyre. Maybe the unjust difficulties I endured in my past marriage, and the fact that I had to leave my lovely home and children with them hating me for a while until they grew up enough to love me again were the price I had to pay for a past unjust and unthinkable sin in another lifetime. Sometimes I think that all the pain I went through must have been justified by such a crime. What else could possibly make sense?Tom Robbins has helped me a lot in my journeys and still does. His wisdom and humor about the give and take of healthy personal relationships. His wisdom and humor about rising above misfortune and handicap. His wisdom and humor about rising above repression. His wisdom and humor about the importance of becoming happy and wise by experiencing and becoming comfortable with the "romance of solitude". His wisdom and humor about finding joy in spite of everything. His wisdom and humor about the importance (and necessity) of leaving loveless, repressive relationships behind and believing that you deserve better and that you will find it. His wisdom and humor about the paralyzing effects and silliness and futility of feeling sorry foroneself. His wisdom and humor about taking RISKS in the face of CHANGE. His books, I believe, can change the course of one's life, but I also believe his books they can change a person's karma as well. I believe they have given me sound, helpful, and loving guidance in changing mine. Plus, more than a little crazy wisdom to boot.

May your karma be merry and bright,
Journey
****************************************************************
Shorter Journey: Empowerment in spite of everything? :-)More empower to you.I guess enlightenment requires the right match or perhaps a spark.

Dale
****************************************************************

I'm sorry, Journey, I didn't realize how ambiguous my remark "Shorter Journey;" was. The "shorter" part is one of those internetisms that means a summary is to follow. And then mixed with Journey/journey it indeed looked like I was suggesting a "shorter journey", but I was just summarizing what you wrote as "Empowerment in spite of everything" not suggesting that a shorter journey was available. Ah, words, what're you gonna do with 'em!

Dale
****************************************************************

Journey, thank you for sharing your very insightful thoughts and your experiences with us, the kind of things you have shares and the enlightenment resulting from it will resonate with many I am sure. I also think you are so right that it's about finding balance, that when you get out of one relationship that was overbalanced on the oppression with one partner, that you then don't do that in turn to someone else who has a very different personality.I believe we are here to learn and be shaped by our experiences, which is what karma is all about, and the way we do that is through our relationships with other people. What you've been through and the choice you had to make has surely earned you bucket loads of karma points.TR has wisdom that percolates throughout all of those experiences, he touches on those truths, his insights are so valuable on so many things and I think that's why so many of us just have such a deep affinity for his writing and such a deep admiration for him.Like the love is the ultimate outlaw quote - I once tried to share that with my ex-husband. He absolutely hated it. To him, it expressed much of what was wrong with our relationship. It did to me too, but obviously from the other perspective.I am stating the obvious here but I think TR's biggest messages are that we are here to go through stuff, and so go through stuff we will - but it's how we deal with it that makes all the difference - ARA's philosophy of dancing in the rain or allowing yourself and your light to be doused by it. So to look for the joy in everything.

Julie xox
****************************************************************

No shorter journey for me I'm afraid, Dale. I'm very convinced that ashorter journey just wasn't in the cards for me for a lot of reasonstoo numerous and private for me to mention. I'm just so very thankfulthe stormy parts didn't go on any longer for me than they did!My formula for keeping the light burning?:The right match, a spark, a determination and wizened skills neededkeep the light alive in spite of stormy weather, and an absence ofill-fated hurricanes to be sure. TR content: "Lighten up!" of course.

Journey
****************************************************************
No worries or apologies needed, Dale. What a sweet man you are in somany ways! I was not upset by your comment at all. Just felt a need toclarify with a bit more precision to enhance understanding. Plus yourwords challenged me to add a few insights of my own to youralready-astute punster-vations. But, I must admit that youroften-astonishing punster-isms often leave me searching for and thengrinning about your double meanings. You sometimes remind me of myfather who had such a hilarious, wise, and wonderful gift fordouble-speech. I can relate to your frustrations about the ambiguity of words. As along-time technical communicator who strives to "write short" in mywork with every word I craft, I am so often accused of using "too muchdetail" in my writing. So, I often find myself damned if I use toomuch detail and damned if I don't. (Like how do you leave out detailsfor people controlling the electronics for a nuclear submarine while"keeping things short"?) We are so pushed toward brevity in ourfast-paced, e-mail-information- bombarded world, aren't we? It's ashame in many ways I think. Just consider the glorious detail andgorgeous script that people used to compose with pen and quill whensending letters to each other in days gone by. And then they'd tiethem to the leg of a carrier pigeon and send them on their way. Allthat miraculousness and romanticism seems next to lost with respect toletter writing today.How much we learn from each other (let alone TR) on this amazing listof yours, sir! For example, take TR's quote near the bottom of Pg. 264:"The moon is the original mirror. The first to refuse to distort CHOICE."How many knights have been moved by the moon's reflection to travellong distances to reunite with their ladies?How many generals have been moved by the moon's reflection to stop wars?How many kings and queens have been moved by the moon's reflection tohelp the poor?I wonder.

Journey
****************************************************************

Bon Journey, I'm glad we are clear (as the moon) about the length of journeys. I never like to miss understanding. But you always give good answer, even if the question is questionable. You always show up with belles lettres on. I agree with you that this is a fine wine of a list.

Dale, who is sweet in some ways, but not always. :-)
****************************************************************
Well, Dale, you can bet that it wouldn't have gotten done in sevendays if TR had had anything to do with it. He'd be incessantlysketching and re-sketching things out on those little, lined kiddiepads of paper of his, agonizing over every detail of every molecule ofeverything -- trying to get it all absolutely perfect. We'd STILL bewaiting for Africa, Greenland, and Ohio to be designed (well, maybenot Ohio). Not to mention good wines, Belgian chocolates, and orgasms.
No, Dale, I get too impatient just waiting for TR to come out with newbooks. I can't even BEGIN to imagine waiting for him to design theuniverse.

As my dear, ol' Tennessee-born grandpa used to say, "I'd be older thanthe back of God's head by the time that happened!"

Journey