READ! I love to read. I'm a very eclectic reader and read everything from history to adventure to mysteries to science to Mrs. Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. Reading allows me to meet so many people involved in so many situations and with so very many problems to solve. I've been introduced to kings and queens, writers, soldiers, poets, scientists, detectives, a few ghosts, talking animals, farmers, doctors, sailors, lawyers, Olympians, as well as, people from every continent. Books help me to be more empathetic, patient, and tolerant; allow me the freedom to travel; and provide hours of free entertainment.
When I was a young student, the city library wasn't accessible to me. I wasn't allowed to walk downtown by myself and, with only one car, my dad took it to work. But, we did have a school library- and I soon went through everything I was interested in. I remember reading all of Edgar Allen Poe as a 7th grader. I also read our encyclopedias. We had two sets at home and I started from A and went all the way to Z- of course, this wasn't a full 26 books for each set, as some of the letters had to share a book (think Q, Z, or X).
I always try to squeeze in a little reading every day. Sometimes I have one book upstairs and another one down! Then if the television is on and I'm not interested in the show, I read. If I'm having a hard time falling asleep, I read. If I'm going to the beach, relaxing on the porch, or traveling, I read. I'm not sure what made me love reading so much (although I remember my dad reading a lot, too), but I am so grateful for this appreciation of books. I know that many of my successes in school and later in life have come from the knowledge I received, the vocabulary I acquired and the understandings I have of our place in history. I'm so grateful to have this gift of loving to read.
