Books and Reading
There is no friend as loyal as a book - Ernest Hemingway.
The habit of reading was instilled in me by my first school, for which I am grateful.
The foundation of your life is built upon the education you receive during your time in kindergarten. I can proudly say that I had the best kindergarten experience. I studied at The Bethlehem International school. They had the best teaching methods. The classroom itself, was a text.
This is what my baby brain looked like. We all had our favorite letters. 'My favorite used to be 'C', which had a baby cat entailed to it. If the Reception grade classroom was painted with letters and numbers, the Senior grade classroom was filled with fable-posters. Learning began the moment we stepped into those classrooms and looked at those walls.
By the time I reached fourth grade, I had read a considerable amount of fairy tales and other children's books. I only have a faint memory of the school library, but I am absolutely certain that I haven't seen a more beautiful library. I remember looking at a picture-book that had an image of an all-flavors-ice-cream cone. My friends and I wondered if we'd ever find such an ice-cream. It turned out, such ice-cream cones were quite common, and I even bought one, years later at a mela. I also remember looking at a world map that was hung on the wall of the library. What made it different from other libraries in general was that it had a bed. A big bed with white sheets. Quite unusual for a library! But it was so aesthetically pleasing, that the entire place resembled a setting from the very fantasy tales we used to read in there.
My reading habit dropped when I moved to a new school after fourth grade. This school didn't have a proper children's library. I read monthly magazines and educational books, but that was it. I recultivated my habit of reading during seventh grade when I got access to the upper-primary students' library. I was still extremely obsessed with fairy tales. The Rainbow Magic books were my favorite and I used to draw pictures of all the fairies. However, that interest was short-lived. Soon enough, I discovered Harry Potter and other classics.
My reading habit has gone up and down throughout the years, but I'm lucky enough to have an amazing library at the college where I am currently studying. I pick up books from friends and relatives' homes whenever I can, and I buy new books every now and then. I get excited every time I see a bookstore and have also begun work on setting up a home library.
Whenever I read a book now, I am transported back to the specific moment and location when I first read it.
Books have been with me at every phase of my life - there indeed is no friend as loyal as a book.
This post is a part of #BlogChatterA2Z 2023.
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Unlike you, I was forced into reading but not encouraged into it. I started reading to escape boredom. Being the good kid I was, I lost the TV privileges from childhood. Today I thank my parents for that. There are enough funny incidents surrounding that one decision. Anyways I started reading anything I could lay my hands upon. First, it was the children's weekly, then the newspapers thereon. I still remember the excitement I had when promoted to the fifth standard, because of the open library access.
ReplyDeleteIt was like a maze to me. All the shelves and narrow passages appeared orderless and hard for my little brain. Even today, I remember my first book, 'Famous Five' by Enid Blyton. It catapulted my urge to read and I was fascinated by the classics. I taught myself to read Shakespeare and classic English poetry by the time I was in sixth. I used to have a bigdictionary near me whenever I tried to read them. It's more accurate to say I read the dictionary than their original works. And years later, here I am addicted to reading, searching for new meadows to explore. But as Robert Frost said, "miles and miles to go before I sleep".
Keeping Harry Potter aside, Famous Five was the first book I read as well, after my fairy phase. It marked the beginning of a craving towards detective novels.
DeleteBooks are the best friends, no doubt.
ReplyDeleteYes.
DeleteBooks have been with me at every phase of my life - there indeed is no friend as loyal as a book.
ReplyDeleteSeems like a sentence written by me :)
Looking forward to reading your books. 'Under The Mistletoe & Other Stories' has caught my interest for quite some time now.
Delete