Out of the Forest and Back into the Jungle?

I wrote an earlier post where I mentioned buying Gregory P. Smith's book 'Out of the Forest' and reading it this year -

You've Gotta Have Faith ... and Religion?

I couldn't help thinking of the movie 'Bronson' and the parallels to Gregory's story while reading 'Out of the Forest', especially when he said, "my whole life I've been fighting myself". 

Sin?

I had never heard of Gregory and his story until the day I bought his book after hearing him talk about aliens, ancestors, visions and mushrooms at a talk titled 'Shaping Life into a Story' at the Byron Writers Festival.

There was a ring of truth to Gregory's story and I just had to buy and read his book after hearing all of that on the day.

Gregory P. Smith in the
'Shaping Life Into Story'
 talk at the 2018 BWF 

I had actually gone to that talk to hear Zacharey Jane and Bri Lee, not knowing who Gregory P. Smith was until then.
Lifeboats, Flying Fish and the Sea of the Subconscious

I also thought that it was a bit of a synchronicity that the movie 'Bohemian Rhapsody' came out a few months after me reading this passage from page 215, "The Catholic Church and the Sisters of Mercy had taught me that music was evil and, for whatever reason, I had taken it to heart.
There were two notable exceptions - Tchaikovsky's '1812 Overture' and Queen's 'Bohemian Rhapsody'.

I loved the enormity of the overture and the way it told of Russia's refusal to be overthrown by Napoleon's raiders 200-odd years earlier.
I loved 'Bohemian Rhapsody' because it's one of the most beautiful songs ever written and, as far as I was concerned, it was about me.
Just like poor boy Freddie Mercury's imagination, I also sometimes wished I'd never been born at all."

I also thought it was a personal synchronicity that on page 232 of the book Gregory mentioned that one of his favourite books was 'Jung and Tarot', which I mentioned buying earlier this year -

Still Following the White Rabbit?

And mentioned the book again later in the year in this post -

Battling Booze Addiction in Australia?

The Many Faces of COINcidence?

Gregory also mentions Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Trilogy of Five as another favourite.
Synchronicity, 42 and Owls?

Sarah Sentilles and Bri Lee in #42

I also thought that it was an ironic coincidence that as much as Gregory hated St. Patrick's in Armadale for what they had done to him in his childhood, he mentions his daughter being born on 

March 17th ... which is St. Patrick's Day.
Then on page 272 Gregory mentions a place that I was more or less stuck in for a good chunk of my working life, when he says (and I agree with him) that, "IKEA is thoroughly overrated." 
There were no offensive four letter words to me in the book until Gregory went and dropped that iBomb:-) 
Still, the book is a great read and I highly recommend it to you.