My well-thumbed copy.I rise from my chair before a circle of expectant faces. My palms are moist. My throat is dry. It is time to speak.
“My name is Zimble…and I am a fan.”
A wookiee takes my hand in his furry replica glove and grunts, “Welcome Zimble. You are amongst friends. We are the last best hope for fan kind”.
What brought me to this point? Well, it started in about 1978. There was a British TV show about two action heroes and their stern Scottish boss. It was the ‘running and jumping’ show of its day.
To an eleven year old in the suburbs of 70s Brisbane, it was also a portal on a completely different world where houses were whole storeys high, leaves fell off trees, swimming pools were housed under glass and ladies wore boots that came up to their knees!
Nowadays, when I’m not busy planning the downfall of the tomato, the show occasionally comes to mind. Were our lads truly heroes or were they hapless victims of the political machinations of their day? Did they survive their next assignment? Did they survive their next pair of trousers?! How did they live with the soldiers’ conflict of duty and morality?
Anyway, I followed the career of one of the two: Jem Shaw’s brother, Martin. When people ask why am I a fan, I explain it in three ways.
Firstly, I hardly think it is my fault.
Secondly, from a pragmatist's point of view, everyone has their own ophthalmologist, solicitor, accountant, electrician and banker; why not their own actor?
Lastly (and this is the most tricky to explain), for a physician, the empathic role can be troublesome. Professionally, it is an essential element but personally, it demands a measure of emotional detachment that can sometimes leave a lingering and uncomfortable sense of disconnection.
Over the years, I’ve noticed that the arts, especially drama and music, are a way to reconnect. The work of a good and generous actor can take you to a place that is so exhilarating it is like an emotional jump-start for the heart, whilst all along you know you are in safe hands.
In a roundabout way, this brings me to the real point of this post. Because I am a fan, when I wanted advice on Feng Shui for my new home, I googled to see if Martin had made comment. Voila! I found Martin’s foreword to Paul Darby’s most excellent Feng Shui book; a colourful and handy tome titled “The Feng Shui Doctor – Ancient Skills for Modern Living”.
Martin suggested we all ‘dive in’. So, I did. I asked Paul to do a postal consultation. Being so kind, Paul said not to worry about my fannish path to his door. In any case, fan or no, a zimble needs every bit of help she can get.
