This I Believe

Ever since I was a child, reading has been a sort of hobby of hobbies. I found it to be a refuge from the everyday drain of life, an oasis from the mandatory curriculum of education. What I failed to appreciate then was the insight and encouragement I received from countless authors. Reading in all it’s forms has pushed me to learn, grow, and mature.

There is power in words. From the moment our eyes light upon the dark printed ink something curious and awesome occurs. Our minds start to develop new ways of thinking and understanding. We gain inumerable nuances of new information, constantly reprogramming ourselves and the funny part is, we don’t even realize it. Ever find yourself quoting a poem by Edgar allen Poe? Or perhaps rattling of some trivial fact while watching Jeopardy? This happens everyday and more often then not is the direct result of reading.

I believe every one should be encouraged to use the faculty of their imagination while reading, and at that try reading everything. Newspapers, Fiction, Science-Fiction, Biographies, and Auto Biographies, everything should be at least attempted. Much like tasting new foods of listening to a new music group, reading should be experienced in all of it’s flavors.

Reading should be a focus of extreme importance in our schools, in the home and as a personal practice. There is so much enjoyment to be had, so much knowledge to be learned, and in the end there is only benefit.

All the places we visit without every leaving the room. All the people we get to know without every meeting them. Books read are experiences relived, and there is no telling just how life changing a single book can be.

This I believe, that no one should ever give up reading. No person should ever cringe at the thought of sitting down to a great novel. There should be fervent passion for reading and learning. For those who say they hate to read, I offer the age old saying, never judge a book by it’s cover.