Doug Van Pelt

We Are Born Naked

I notice what are some of the details that Don's publisher must have taken out the first time this book was published. The original title was Prayer And The Art Of Volkswagon Maintenance, and it probably didn't include short references to Don's "johnson" or the moderate use of alcohol. I had heard that this version (Through Painted Deserts) was like the "unedited" version and all. While I can see how a non-descript explanation of these things could lead some to question its inclusion, too. But in the context it certainly isn't in a profane manner.

I remember Don being asked a question about alcohol in a Q&A session I attended in Austin this Fall. "It's a trick," he said, describing how the devil must laugh that we get sidetracked by an emotional issue that certainly has its share of extreme tragedies and real-life problems. But his point is that we react and avoid the subject and no one is ever taught about moderation and discipline and personal responsibility. Other cultures have done a much better job than ours. We've certainly given our own culture plenty of reasons to react, with the shinanigans during prohibition and the bawdiness of the wild, wild west, that's for sure... Don's point was that our response or answer to the problem with alcohol is more reactionary than balanced, and people needing to learn the balance lose as a result.