What if I were a famous celebrity who had tens of thousands of adoring fans who made detailed lists of my daily clothing ensembles, and paparazzi hid outside my house waiting for the chance to snap a photo of me walking the dog or loading the girls into my custom Hummer? If I were THAT famous, one day Oprah would call me up and say “Oh Yankee please please please come on my show? You see, it’s sweeps week and I need your fame to boost my ratings.” I would agree to be interviewed by Oprah. I would sashay out onto her stage, weighing 15 pounds less than I do now, with my long healthy flowing hair that is three shades blonder than it is now, trailing behind me. I would sit next to Oprah and she would say “Tell me about one of the things in your bazillion dollar mansion that you treasure?” My answer would be “Oh my books of course.”
My mother loved to read to me. I have a six volume collection of The Bookhouse; a beautiful collection of children’s stories published in 1925. My mother read and re-read the stories in these volumes to me when I was a child as her mother read them to her when she was a child as I am reading these stories to my girls. I can remember walking to the public library with my father during summer nights after dinner. I would get a couple of books from the children’s section then take them upstairs to the adult section and peruse them as I sat in one of the large wooden chairs waiting for my father as he stood for hours taking books from the shelves, reading a few pages and replacing them until he found two or three to bring home until our next walk to the library. I have The Complete Works of Saki, a book I gave to my father on his 70th birthday. I scoured used bookstores far and wide to find this book.; finally finding success in a used book shop in Tiffin Ohio. My parents are gone now. The Bookhouse collection, The Complete Works of Saki, collections of Kipling, Frost, Dickens….these books bring me comforting memories. But you know it’s like that bumper sticker I saw the other day reads…. “The best things in life aren’t things”. It’s not the books. It’s the love of reading these books. My parents taught me to love to read books. That is what I treasure.
Well I’m not famous; I’m not 15 pounds lighter nor is my hair the color of sunshine but a love of reading books is still something to treasure. I urge each and every one of you to pass this on to your children. Read to your children. Sneak up on them if you catch them reading and snap a picture. You might just win a prize. Kelly is having a contest.
My mother loved to read to me. I have a six volume collection of The Bookhouse; a beautiful collection of children’s stories published in 1925. My mother read and re-read the stories in these volumes to me when I was a child as her mother read them to her when she was a child as I am reading these stories to my girls. I can remember walking to the public library with my father during summer nights after dinner. I would get a couple of books from the children’s section then take them upstairs to the adult section and peruse them as I sat in one of the large wooden chairs waiting for my father as he stood for hours taking books from the shelves, reading a few pages and replacing them until he found two or three to bring home until our next walk to the library. I have The Complete Works of Saki, a book I gave to my father on his 70th birthday. I scoured used bookstores far and wide to find this book.; finally finding success in a used book shop in Tiffin Ohio. My parents are gone now. The Bookhouse collection, The Complete Works of Saki, collections of Kipling, Frost, Dickens….these books bring me comforting memories. But you know it’s like that bumper sticker I saw the other day reads…. “The best things in life aren’t things”. It’s not the books. It’s the love of reading these books. My parents taught me to love to read books. That is what I treasure.
Well I’m not famous; I’m not 15 pounds lighter nor is my hair the color of sunshine but a love of reading books is still something to treasure. I urge each and every one of you to pass this on to your children. Read to your children. Sneak up on them if you catch them reading and snap a picture. You might just win a prize. Kelly is having a contest.
1 comment:
If I ever want someone to go book shopping with, I'm picking you. I think you could teach me a thing or two.
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