A pod of killer whales glisten in the late afternoon sun; herons quietly fish in the bay; damn, the thermocouple just died on your very full propane fridge and sh*t! the boat engine kicks out randomly in the middle of a tidal rip in Gabriola passage.
As many islanders know, these are both the thrills and the trials of island life.
I have just had the pleasure of reading Joy Davis’ COMPLICATED SIMPLICITY – Island life in the Pacific Northwest. As part time off-grid islanders, my wife Kathryn and I both agree that Ms. Davis completely captures the essence of island life in our region.
No wonder, she grew up on Bath Island in the Southern Gulf – her brave parents trading life in the city for an organic one full of daily challenge and gratifying beauty on a private island.
Ms Davis’ upbringing was as ‘un-helicopter parent’ as it gets. She and her sister commuted by boat to school, pre-cell phone, in all kinds of weather, in all seasons, leaving early morn and home often in winters, at or after dusk. Her mother leaving a lantern lit on the dock. Not for the faint of heart.
In addition to being a how-to guide for off-grid living, Complicated Simplicity is also about those people whose deliberate lives have been spent on islands.
Highlighting personal stories of more than twenty intrepid islanders we discover what draws these individuals whose character and ingenuity, resilience and eccentricities leap off the page.
A highly recommended read!
