How reading is important, not just, as a leisure activity, but also, a fulfillment of the mind, and the, soul too! Translated…
After breakfast on Sunday morn, as the rain hadn’t gotten to big yet, I’d taken out the umbrella, slung that huge bag of books that’s about due to the library, thinking, that I could, return the whole lot before the due dates, and pick up the reserved books I’d wanted to borrow for me and the kids to read along. And, due to where we live, other than the bookstore visits, sometimes I get to be alone on my own, but mostly, I had to, haul along my two young children, around two weeks to a little over a months, I’d gotten to the library as scheduled. Every time I’d gone there, on the return too, no matter how heavy a load I was carrying I’d always felt light in my, steps. I’d recalled seeing a young boy, with a large book that’s, half his height, hoppity, hopped to the counter, to check it out, he’d grinned ear to ear, like he’d found, some sort of a, treasure or something.
There wasn’t enough children’s book collection in my hometown library, or maybe it wasn’t, labeled well enough, it was hard for us to find the fitting to the age readers, and, it was like betting with our lucks every time we went to the libraries, whatever my hands landed on, that was the one I took home. I’d eaten the stories of some books for older people not set for children when I was young.
illustratioin from UDN.com

And think on it, I was, lucky too, without the carefully selecting the readers by the adults for me, it’d, helped broaden my horizon, each and every time I went, tiptoed to get to the books, reading the adult books! So, this is what adults are, reading……seeing those, words that’s not simplified so children could understand, counting the limits of the number of books I can check out, not wanting to let any of them go, there may be, the imaginations I’d acquired toward the written form of language, and so, what if I couldn’t, understand everything I was, reading?
Although, there are a few bookshops next to the train stations, but they mostly sold the school supplies, the test study guides. The only bookstore that fitted to be called a “bookstore” to me, was the Kingstone Bookstore that I had to take half an hour bus ride to get to; and, every time I’d stepped into the store, it’d made me feel like I was, getting the high end treatments like I was, the honorary, guest, that sense of joy, enjoyment, and leisure.
There were, the novels on the second floor by that window, with an assortment of novels I’d never seen from the libraries or in my school. And this was the very first place that took my money, it was a shorter story, about how a group of people went into that state of dormancy for thousands of years, to dodge the changes of time, how they’d, traveled through, time. Actually I’d, read it cover to cover before I bought it, but don’t know why, I’d thought, that if I could have it in my backpack, and pull it out as I waited for the bus, how wonderful that would be.
As I graduated and grew up, I’d transferred to and from work in different towns, and, certainly, my wish came true, in the commute of almost two hours every day, I’d kept a book close by, to read as I waited, and, for some, I look like I was, trying to, catch up on my reading, but, it was my means of finding that calm, in the coming and going, the rushes from day to day.
To this very day, as I marched into midlife, the libraries had all, evolved, especially after I married, I’d started, living in the urban city, there’s no shortages of books, and yet, because of my earlier memories, no matter how my role altered, or how my lifestyle changed, I’d still gone to the libraries regularly, gone to the bookstores; and, whenever I head out, I always pack a book in my bag, so I can, start back up that feeling of, treasure hunt I had, to find the leisure in my, day to day, living.
And so, this love of reading started young, for this person, she’d always loved reading, and now, she’d kept going in her habits of, packing a book in her purse, so she can have access to something interesting, when she’s out and about, and can, squeeze in, those, tiny moments to, spare…
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