what reading means to me

25 May 2018

I'm five years old, my mom is reading children's books like Narnia and Little House on the Prairie to my sisters and I as I slowly doze off to sleep in my bunk bed. I'm eleven reading, through The Lord of the Rings for the first time, my eyes are magnets to the pages, not able to move until I've finished the last page. I'm in college, sitting in my classroom thirty minutes earlier than my classmates and professors just to fit in two or three chapters into my busy schedule.

People ask me what I like to do for fun, and without hesitating I say "I like to read." But I always feel like it's a generic response. It doesn't sound like an impressive hobby from the surface, it's something a lot of people are able to do and take for granted. I mean, most people I've met have read at least one book in their lifetime. When I tell people I like to read I feel like they can't ever fully understand the weight of that statement. I feel like there is no way for me to express how reading has become something that means the absolute world to me.

Reading has been something that has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember.

I look back on the evolution of my reading habits as a timeline of my life. By looking at all the varying genres I've read over the years, and by seeing how many books I have read at certain times I can see how I have changed and grown through my reading and how it has shaped who I am now. My overflowing bookshelves serves as a testament to who I am and what I love to anyone who might not know me.

Reading is something that keeps me sane and calms me when I'm unbelievably stressed and don't feel like I can make it through difficult times. I have become an escape reader in the past couple years. When I was young, I would only read to enjoy the story, but now I turn to books to escape. They are a way for me to let my mind rest for a minute and focus on the characters and their problems. They open my eyes and give me inspiration to persevere and stop hiding in my comfort zone.

Through reading and exploring the different worlds stuffed between the covers of books, I am able to do everything I never get to do otherwise. As someone who is constantly craving new worlds and adventures, the ability to read books written by billions of different people who have all had different experiences than I have means so much to me.

Reading is not at all a simple thing to me. It is so much more than a way to spend my time when I'm bored. I has become a part of who I am. And there is no way I can fully explain that.

8 comments

  1. This is so sweet. I love reading too, and it is hard to explain what about it makes it so wonderful. x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It really is! It's such a personal thing and it means so many different things to different people. But that's what makes reading so special! <3

      Delete
  2. Very relatable. Also, I used to just read any book and even though I didn't really like it, I wouldn't admit it to myself? Now, I read a lot more but I'm careful about what I choose.

    Reading for me is something that I just can't give up.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I forgot that I wrote a comment here xD

      Delete
    2. Haha no prob!
      Yeah that's another part of reading that I've had to learn too. Figuring out what your specific tastes are and also being willing to admit when you don't like a book, even when others are hyping it up.

      Delete
  3. I really like your idea of looking at your reading habits as a timeline of your life. That is such an interesting way to look at yourself and to remember your history.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've found it's a fun and easier way for me to keep track of my life. It might be weird, but it works for me!

      Delete
  4. I can really relate to what you wrote in this post, especially when you wrote how reading is not just something you do with your time, it is now part of who you are as a person.

    I had a thought when you wrote how reading as shaped who you are. I would say that reading has also shaped me. I have noticed how my taste for books has changed. I know that other things besides books influence and shape me, and I wonder if these experieces have also influenced the books I am now more inclined to read. For example, I loved reading fiction as a kid, but now I am beginning to enjoy more nonfiction books. What about you? Have your reading tastes changed as you've grown older?

    ReplyDelete