On Why I Read

People assume I read because I love reading. But the truth is, I read because I love people. Opening the pages of books has been a powerful tool that has strengthened and sharpened my mind, equipping me to be better fit for conversations with others. And that is why I prioritize reading.

It started years ago when my husband started taking University classes. He’d come home bursting with ideas and enthusiasm over what he was learning. I could barely follow what he shared, having minimal exposure to the subjects he wanted to discuss. And I began realizing that my own subject matter that I had to discuss with him revolved around our young children, my housework, and my minimal interactions with the people I would see in my day.

I realized that I was really boring.

And I say this very carefully; but I realized that my husband was being exposed to an exciting world and coming home to a boring wife. And so I determined that I wanted to become an interesting person to my husband. He never made me feel like I lacked or was insufficient in any manner, and he has only ever always given me full confidence that he would faithfully love and serve me as he vowed on our wedding day. But as I saw him growing and developing, my love for him compelled me to want grow and develop, too.

And so I started reading the books – A Well Trained Mind, The Power of Less, Choosing to See, When I Lay My Isaac Down, The Odyssey, Ordering Your Private World, The History of Love, A Severe Mercy.

These were the pages that filled my mind and began to awaken it beyond the drudgery of the every day and into something much bigger.

My desire to be interesting to my husband has fed my reading, built on a foundation of love and respect for the man I admire most in all the world. But as I saw our conversations strengthen in scope and substance, I saw it happen with other people, too. I was no longer relegated to talking about my children’s grand accomplishments in any given day – I had ideas I could offer to the greater conversation, and a budding understanding of different types of people.

I began to see my world get bigger and people, in a sense, get smaller. Everyone has a story. Everyone wants to be loved and to feel like they are valued and understood. And books cracked open that door for me – I began to find I had things I could talk about with people from all different walks of life because my books had given me a little peek into their world. I could ask better questions. I could understand a little more. I had an in to share hope with them.

I think we tend to live rather self absorbed lives, not inherently because we are selfish – but because we are ignorant.

I think often of my times overseas. As a guest in foreign countries I have been immensely touched by the local people that have been brave enough to venture up to me with a welcoming smile and a haltering “hello” – in my language. It has warmed my heart simply to have someone exert effort to reach out to me where I am. Often it is the only word they know in English, but it has meant everything.

I am finding this principle applies in conversations. People don’t need you to know everything they know, but they are deeply touched when you know something of their world and can express a genuine interest in their life, their passions, and their struggles.

Books I have read have prepared me to be compassionate and empathetic towards people with disabilities and/or struggles that I don’t personally have experience with, and they have equipped me to converse semi intelligently about obscure subject matters that I could never have dreamed would come up.

I am not particularly passionate about the history of Niagara Falls, John James Audubon’s travels, Constantine’s views on philosophy, or Louis Braille’s struggles to bring reading to the blind – but I am passionate about the people these books have led me to have meaningful conversations with.

And knowing that books have opened doors to those dear souls, it keeps me moving through my stack of books, filling my mind with fodder for the Lord to use as He sees fit for others.