A Practical Guide to Simple Living
The Lilypad List: 7 Steps to the Simple Life - Marian Van Eyk McCain
Oct 28, 2008
The Lilypad List by Marian Van Eyk McCain is one of those rare and wonderful works that give positive practical advice in a lively and enjoyable format. The book uses the writer’s garden pond, lily pads and frogs as light-hearted metaphors for simple living in harmony with one’s environment.
7 Steps to the Simple Life
The 7 steps begin with Catching the Bug. In the same way that the frog catches bugs, Marian Van Eyk McCain describes catching the bug of simplicity. She keeps her promise not to venture into the doom and gloom of pollution, global warming and the destruction of the rainforests, whilst giving reassurance that simple living is not about hardship: “I hope you will discover as I have, that it is one of the happiest, most rewarding, delightful and satisfying things you can possibly do.”
Written in a friendly style with absolutely nothing of the know-it-all expert, she assumes that the reader is familiar with the usual environmental problems and energy issues, so the Lilypad List tackles
- green issues, with an appendix on “your ecological footprint”
- relationships, both with other people and with the Earth
- stress and health ( take the Sick Canary Test )
- spirituality and reclaiming a sense of wonder in the world
- and perhaps the most difficult for many people – aliveness : “By this I mean an ever deepening awareness of ourselves as living, pulsing, sensing, experiencing creatures of exquisite sensitivity to the world around us, and a willingness to engage fully with every experience that comes along.”
Simple Living Stories
Following the lives of the little frogs, the reader learns about the author and her experiences at home and in different parts of the world. It is humbling to know that this woman has lived what she writes, and continues to do so. Inspirational and amusing stories throughout the book illustrate her passion for simplicity. Most of the observations are of the frogs in the writer's present garden, but some stories relate to frogs in other lands: “Once when I lived in the tropics there was a small gardenia bush which grew right outside my window…..in its branches lived a bright green tree frog which chirped all night…”
Another story tells of creating a solar powered cooker and yet another describes the sweetness of a long relationship with a cat called L.
Simplify Life by Being the Change
There are checklists, quizzes and suggestions for personal reflection all of which help in the quest to simplify life. Throughout the book there is an emphasis on “being the change”. The writer quotes Gandhi who said, “We must be the change we wish to see in the world”. Although Gandhi was specifically talking about non-violence, one feels certain that he would use the same words in the context of bringing life back to a more simple way of being. It was, of course, something that he also felt strongly about.
An important reminder towards the end of the book states:
“It is not the content of our lives that defines them as simple, but the process.” This book leads the reader gently and kindly through that process, to a greater understanding of simple living.
Lilypad List Royalties
A third of the royalties from the book go to an environmental charity called Amphibian Ark, which nominated 2008 at The Year of The Frog. More information about this and the author is available on her website.
The Lilypad List : 7 Steps to the Simple Life is published by Findhorn Press
GBP 8.95 $14.95
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