I still read him sometimes. I go back to see if some of the magic I once experienced will be there. It is a fool’s errand. I have seen the man behind the curtain and know his words too well. I am no longer moved. I can only see the regurgitation of previous pieces, the shallow self-absorption. It is best to not look too closely, to be able to figure out how the trick is done as it taints every aspect, leaving me to understand all that I thought was talent was simply a con-man’s game of slight of hand. All just smoke and mirrors.