I did always think of Heinlein as a strict rationalist, although a dispassionate examination of his works doesn't support that.
Just as I could tell you about my first Andre Norton novel or my first L'Engle or my first Asimov, I could write a paragraph about how each of these writers influenced me, my writing, and my thoughts, and do to this day.
Why do all your friends talk like books?
It did occur to me that the effect of good literature may be as dizzying as that of alcohol.