..It was seen that the people
of Pompeii had all been enemies of the Gwid in a recent incarnation
and that the explosion...was the Gwid's special way of showing
the populace that he is not a person to be trifled with..."
I recalled with disgust Atmananda's claim that he used to toss
his dog fifteen to twenty feet into the air.
I recalled with disgust his treatment of me during one of his
public lectures. "Can anyone see what is wrong with Mark?"
he had asked the audience, after calling me to the front of the room.
No response.
"Look at him now."
Silence.
"The energy around his head," he told them matter-of-factly, "is
not balanced. But don't worry. We are working on him."
As I grappled with the memory, I grew angry. Atmananda, I realized,
probably saw me as one of his pets. Suddenly it struck me that while
Atmananda might be like McMurphy, he might also be like the novel's
mean-spirited antagonist, Nurse Ratched, also known as Big Nurse.
Both Atmananda and Big Nurse, I realized, discouraged their wards
from exploring the outdoors. I remembered Atmananda warning me,
before I went backpacking in Yosemite, that he was picking up bad vibes
from the trip. Despite his grim prophecy, the trip had been a success.
Pages:
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142