If your parents were anything like mine, you grew up being read to and then reading. I mean I didn't just casually read, I hunkered down with millions of books and read like nobody's business. The picture above is my bedside table currently, so clearly that love of books stayed with me. Why am I such an advocate for reading? Did it really change my life that much? The answer is yes.
I will read anything I can get my hands on. To this day, I have never not finished a book; I just can't quit once I get started no matter how bad it is. This love provides me with an activity as an adult that I love and costs very little. I just go to the library--with a very large bag--load it up, and return them all two weeks later for another load (yes I read that fast). While this is not practical during the school year, any break I get, the first thing I do is gather books to read. Reading becomes an outlet for my brain, a happy medium between working my brain while still being pleasurable. It is a hobby that does not require another person, is transportable, and does not change as you get older.
How do you develop this intense love for book? Or even a mild admiration for them? You start at a young age. I cannot tell you how many books I have read because I started reading them before I could really remember much else. My parents read aloud to me before I could read myself. I'm not kidding, it made a world of difference in my childhood. While it is important for your kid to go outside and play, it's important to give them time to read. It's not as mindless as watching television, but will cultivate their imagination. I had a blast as a kid because no matter where I was, I could pretend I was somewhere else. My bedroom was not where I slept, it was suddenly the Gryffindor Common Room; our backyard was a magical garden in Narnia. I probably had/still have a hyperactive imagination, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. I was able to transport myself not only in dreams, but in real life and travel wherever I wanted in my mind.
Books are a powerful tool, for my generation especially. We witnessed the transition between paperback and electronic books. Some of us prefer the tiny screen full of an entire library, others prefer the feel and smell of paper. Regardless, all of us grew up in an era when TV was good, but books were better. The most exciting day of school was the book fair! Okay, maybe that was just me, but still. The day the seventh Harry Potter book was released my family bought three copies, one for each child, and we raced to see who could finish first. I can still remember that excitement and that plot line that brought my family together. (I can also still remember my brother finishing first and telling me Harry dies, still bitter). It gave us something to all love and enjoy together.
Find your library card, drive down the road, and pick yourself out some books. You'll be surprised at how much you will enjoy them, even if you've read them before. It will give you something to discuss and enjoy from now on. If you'll excuse me, I have a stack of books to get through.
