"Nature and the Human Soul" a Book Review of Sorts

I read a lot of books. Too many books really. Any time I want to know something I immediately turn to a book. Which is fine, but all this reading takes a lot of time. Time in which I could be actually doing things. So in a way reading about something is a form of procrastination for me. An excuse. I can put off actually doing something until I've finished reading about it. Which is not really fine. Because often reading about it is as far as I'll get.

I've also come to realise that there are a lot of ordinary books out there, and life really is too short to waste time reading an ordinary book. I also find that I invest many hours reading a book, only to have it tell me something I already know. So with free time at a premium, I could save myself a lot of time by just listen to my inner wisdom first. Too much reading is just clutter for the mind.

You could say that "Nature and the Human Soul" by Bill Plotkin has changed my life. This is IT. This is the one book that I have been looking for my whole life. This is the book that I have been searching for in all my readings, all the ecology, sustainability, spirituality, pagan/wiccan books I have been reading to date have just been skirting around the issue. This book is the real deal. I admit that I haven't read the whole thing yet, but what I have read so far I am mighty impressed by. So impressed that I took all my other library books back. So impressed that I actually ordered a copy of it from Amazon to have for my own. I know I will be referring back to this book again and again.

"Nature and the Human Soul" offers a model for the life long spiritual development of our wild selves. The parts of our selves that are denied in our current culture of unremitting production and consumption. But the best thing about this book is that it's not just a theoretical model Plotkin's offering. There are actual practical guidelines for the "tasks" of each stage of development. I intend to work closely with the advice offered in this book. I don't know about you but I feel keenly that there's some dimension sorely lacking in my current life, and I hope the exercises in this book will help to address that.

This book is deep and dense and not always an easy read. But don't let that put you off. See if your local library has a copy. If you live in Brisbane, it definitely will (because I've currently got it!).

Small Steps - Disposing of Garden Poisons

Spurred into action by reading Silent Spring and having a very inquisitive toddler on the loose, I decided it was time to get together and dispose of all the bottles of garden chemicals that have been lurking in the garage for who-knows-how-long (certainly longer than DH and I have been together...) These chemicals are not the sort of things I want to be using in my garden, and honestly I don't see why anyone needs to be using poisons in their garden. Seems like overkill to me.

Unfortunately you can't just dump this stuff in your wheelie bin and forget about it. In landfill the poisons would leech out of their containers and contaminate soil and groundwater (just like what happens when you spray them in your garden!). In Brisbane the council runs designated "collection days" at local tips. Our next one is not until December 5th. So I have gathered the offending items into a box with a big label on it reminding me of the collection date, and placed it somewhere that I definitely won't miss seeing it. I do not want to miss that date!

Contact your council to find out how garden poisons are to be disposed of in your area.

And if you haven't read Silent Spring by Rachel Carson, it will frighten the heck out of you. Certainly makes me more committed than ever to purchasing organically grown produce.

The Op Shop Fairies Were Smiling Upon Me Yesterday!

Yesterday from the minute I woke up I could hear the Lifeline Bookshop calling to me. Never one to ignore such things, as soon as I looked in the window I knew exactly why I was being called there. A beautiful copy of the River Cottage Family Cookbook was staring out at me! I flew into the shop nearly bowling over two fellow shoppers who I was sure were heading for the same book as me (they weren't...). What a find, I feel so lucky!

The Last American Man

I recently finished reading Elizabeth Gilbert's "The Last American Man", a biography of mountain man Eustace Conway.

The book was interesting, but it wasn't quite all I hoped it would be. I was hoping to read more about Eustace's philosophies and experiences in nature, but I guess that'd be a book written BY him, not about him.

This was one of my favourite passages from the book:

"... only those who live in the wilderness can recognize the central truth of existence, which is that death lives right beside us at all times, as close and as relevant as life itself, and that this reality is nothing to fear but is a sacred truth to be praised."

That kind of thing really gives me something to think about because it's so at odds with our current cultural perception of death and shows how far removed our society has become from an understanding of the natural order of life. And although that understanding of the cycle of life and death is something I can try to understand intellectually, within our current culture, it is very difficult to appreciate and really feel the truth of this statement because we are so sheltered from the death of both our fellow humans and that which takes place perpetually to keep us fed.

Easter Peeps

Each year, on Easter Sunday morning, as soon as we wake up we head out into the dew drenched lawn to hunt for Easter Eggs. Unfortunately, DS 7 doesn't actually like chocolate, so we end up with waaaay more eggs than we could possibly eat.

This year in order to avoid all that excess and waste (not to mention the ethical issues that go along with eating non-Fairtrade chocolate) I have crocheted these cute little peeps which we will hunt for on Easter morning. All materials were from my stash. The pattern is from Nicki Trench's Super Cute Crochet.

That lil' minty green chicken is my favourite :)

Contemplating the Infinite

I am currently reading Barbara Kingsolver's Small Wonder and in it she has this lovely quote about the need to preserve wild places:

How can you imagine the infinite if you have never seen how the stars fill a dark night sky?

That is so beautiful. I think I will spend some time "contemplating the infinite" tonight.

I also recently read Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. This is a truy inspiring book about the importance of local seasonal eating. If you haven't already read it, it's well worth doing so. I found a copy at the local library.

Bargain Books

There is a Life Line Bookstore in Bulimba which I like to stop by on a regular basis in the hope of uncovering some treasures. Sometimes I leave with a few classic kids books, sometimes I leave empty handed, and sometimes I come out with an amazing bargain.

Today was definitely the latter!

See what I got for $4.50 total?

And that Toys book, you probably can't see the price tag, but it says $1.00!!

It was such a bargain that I almost felt bad buying it.

almost...

My theory on thrifting is that you need to do it frequently to uncover the good stuff, and not to be disappointed the times you leave empty handed.