John cage was an intense mushroom lover. All kinds of mushrooms. I bought “John Cage: A Mycological Foray: Variations on Mushrooms”, an absolutely beautiful book not long ago and could not be happier. Such a gorgeous and interesting object. John Cage’s life philosophy and thoughts are shared and weirdly are all linked to fungi. There are plenty of great passages that make you stop and think. The book comes with drawings and charts of mushrooms and poetry. Very much worth the expense.
Einstein wrote to Freud to say men should stop having wars. Freud wrote back to say if you get rid of war, you’ll also get rid of love. Freud was wrong. What permits us to love one another and the earth we inhabit is that we and it are impermanent. We obsolesce. Life’s everlasting. Individual’s aren’t. A mushroom lasts for only a very short time. Often I go in the woods thinking after all these years I ought finally to be bored with fungi. But coming upon just any mushroom in good condition, I lose my mind all over again. Supreme good fortune: we’re both alive!
