Art for Love's Sake or Down‐and‐Outs in London and Paris

We all seek the consciousness before creation to fall back on which forms the base of all Zentopias.I think Salinger would have liked what we were doing. 'Zen and the art of charity'.

Buddhists believe in a state of innocence ‘before creation’ which is the happy awareness that joins all consciousness; that may relate to Jeremy saying when in Brazil that he wishes he could give the ‘children their innocence back’ and I wonder if he refers to his own as well, after losing a sister who shared his creative passion. 

in Franny and Zooey, Buddy and Zooey wish they had helped Seymour and hence panic at Franny’s interest in education. Jeremy who studied philosophy also laughed at the “collegiately dogmatic” students as Salinger puts it in the opening of the book.

People were allowed to be whoever they were on stage, which set a dramatic scene for the most authentic theatre imaginable, who would need to see invention on stage when you could see real life. 

All the years of work he did with strong-smelling old street people or young offenders or soldiers brutalized by war showed Jeremy wishes to learn everyday. I would call it ‘Zen and the Art of Charity' - that came to me as being what Salinger must have felt when he decided he would stop writing.

He refused to let anyone film any of his books, a statement of Zen, so maybe that is what we need too. 

'Your Honour,' the lawyer breathed in deeply, with a twinge of knotted emotion, 'this man has become involved in an award-winning piece of theatre at Edinburgh Festival, but he will not be able to tour Europe if he has to go to prison for theft.'

The Judge looked wearily at Jimmy.

'Why should I let you off?' he asked with a shrug, wanting to be impressed by his answer.

Your Honour, ' Jimmy tried, having rehearsed what he was going to say, in front of his mirror, 'because I have found I can act and my young brother,Kevin, is in our play, 'Glad to be Alive' too. I need to look after him. I've given up drinking to concentrate on acting. I really want to be an actor. Kevin has stopped drinking too. My best mate, Gary has even overcome his heroin addiction, all on his own, as we couldn't go on tour, Jeremy said, if he didn't. So he did.

'What's this about a play?' The judge Strachan had in fact been told by Council that Jimmy was in a play, but as a repeat offender, who had the reputation of being Edinburgh's toughest character, he felt that it was all a bit surreal. He needed to hear it from Jimmy's lips. 'What is this play about - and who is this Jeremy?' The judge looked perplexed and a little irritable. He was used to just considering the length of sentence and pronouncing whatever words he could muster that would be admonishing, but succinct and then moving on to the next day's agenda.

'It's about our lives on the street,Your Honour, a day in the life of a homeless hostel. I play the lead, a young man who has a retarded girl-friend in the hostel, whom he farms out to other inmates.'

'Charming. Some people have called the play a monster, I hear.'

The judge was trying to humour Jimmy, although he looked distracted, wondering what Jimmy was really feeling; if he was resolving some pain by acting out his hurt, or others hurt, or if - just possibly - he was even being redeemed by the chance to perform scenes, which had some reference to himself, as the play was subtitled -' A Day in the Life of a Men's Hostel'.