The Beauty of Reading

"The essence of beauty is unity, in variety."- W. Somerset Maugham

I feel I will never be able to truly explain how important reading is to me. I have definitely been through some hard times, and the thing that has always kept me going was a book. I can't imagine life without a book in my hand, and I never have to.

Reading is not only important because it helps us through the hard times, but it makes each individual look at the world in a different light. Reading gives us hope. That's why it is so important. Not only does the book we're reading give us hope, but the fact that someone who came hundreds of years before us, or lives on the other side of the world, can give us such joy, is a small light in a void of darkness. Reading brings us together. No one can stop someone from loving to read. Once a love for reading is sprouted, it can only be cultivated. It's a gift that no one can take away.

One of my favorite memories from when I was younger is reading Blueberries for Sal with my mom and big sister. It was our favorite book growing up, and one morning, my mom awakened us and gave us two buckets so we could go pick blueberries...just like Sal. I remember thinking that that was the best day ever, and I never will forget it. Reading brings joy to many, not only to me and my sister, but to my mom as she watched us enjoy ourselves, and the people at the blueberry patch seeing two children enjoy what they have cultivated.

Reading is a gift that was given to us to keep our hope alive, and it helps us to make sure the fire in our soul never burns out. When we read, not only does it bring us together as one, but it also makes us different. This is probably my favorite part of reading...there's so much conflict in the world, but God gave us a gift that connects us to people everywhere. No one can tear that apart; it shows us that we can see things differently, and still be united. I will never see Narnia the way that C.S. Lewis imagined it, and you will never see it the way I imagined it. That's what makes reading so beautiful. Something that brings us together, shows our differences, and brings unity. Reading is the only thing on earth that I know of that has the power to do that.

Seeing other people enjoy reading gives us joy also. It is a known fact that children whose parents read with them do better in school. Kids aren’t read to just because their parents want them to do well later in life, it is also done because when you read to a child, you give them the world. I have been reading since I was three years old so I remember this feeling of "Wow, everything I need is right here." The thing is, I still know this feeling because I get it every time I open a book, finish a chapter, or even flip a page. When we hold a book, the world is at our fingertips, when we open it, we've grasped it.

Reading is something that brings us together and makes us different at the same time, which makes it more precious and valuable than any of us can understand.