After all the posts on psychic self defence, you might think that I have gone way off-topic here. But no, I want to talk about the importance of our fathers, and how it affects the rest of our life - for better or worse. A good father can make us stronger, wiser, better people (don't worry, I'll do another post on the importance of mothers!). A bad one can scar us for life.

I have been double lucky. I not only had a good father, I married Mr Penry who has been a wonderful father to all the little Penry's making their way in the world. And having such positive masculine influences in my life have been highly beneficial for me, and for the rest of the family.

But I often blog about Mr Penry. Now I would like to tell you a little about my father. He was definitely an eccentric, in every sense of the word. Totally unlike my friend's fathers, mine would stand on his head to meditate, fill in his Pools Coupons (remember those) with the use of a pendulum, taught me to dowse, pick herbs, make wine... he was clever and ambitious that his children should be clever too. Not because he wanted us to get good jobs, but because he believed that knowledge was the only wealth worth having.

He was also a gifted occultist in his own right, steeped in the western mysteries of the Qabbalah. He owned loads of books on the occult which he obtained when a defrocked priest sold them off! My father was, for some reason, rather chuffed about that!

One great thing about being a writer is that you get to put dedications in your books. And my forthcoming book 'The Magical Properties of Herbs... and how to find them' is dedicated to the memory of my wonderful, eccentric, maddening father.

Would anyone here like to share their memories of their father, and how they feel their lives have been shaped by them?