Yes. I can fully admit I was and still am a bookworm.
Growing up, my family used to tease me because I was usually found with a book in my hand. Whether it be on the couch while everyone else was watching TV, on my bed or even in the barn.
That’s right. I would read in the barn while milking cows. I would cover the book in plastic to prevent it from getting barn smell or the occasional splatter on it. And I must also add that I never took a school book, library book or The Bible into the barn. The books I took to the barn were usually old ones I picked up at the thrift store. These books were usually in pretty bad shape. Most had a few pages missing and so I figured they wouldn’t be going back to the thrift store or to anyone else, so I might as well read while milking cows.
I am also one of those people who could read a book and recall what happened in that book years later. I noticed this only happened when it came to subjects or books I really liked. To me, it didn’t matter what kind of books I was reading. I read all genres, including horror, western, romance, adventure, drama and crime solving books. It all depended on what I was in the mood for. I remember reading a lot of R.L. Stine’s “Goosebumps” and Stephen King books. I also read “Little House on the Prairie” by Laura Ingalls Wilder and “Charlotte’s Web” by E.B. White, but one of my favorite books was introduced to me by my seventh grade English teacher. That book was “A Christmas Carol,” by Charles Dickens, and it is still one of my favorite books today. Even though they’ve made movie after movie based on the book, it’s my opinion that none of them beat the book.
My love for reading continued into college, which is why English was my minor. I can recall biting off a little more than I could chew when I decided to sign up for two hard English classes in the same semester. I had to read 12 books for one class and seven in the other.
My friends and dorm roommates thought I was nuts, and looking back I probably should have dropped one of the classes and took it the following semester because it was hard just getting all of the required reading done for those two classes, let alone all my other homework. However, if I recall correctly, I still managed to get As in both of those classes and pull As or Bs in my other courses as well.
After college, I entered the workforce, but I still found time to read. At one point in my life, I even found time to read and be a part of a book club at the Sweetwater County Library. Each week, we’d read so many pages and then discuss them. It was fun.
One thing I’ve noticed is that even though I like reading just for the fun of reading, I am also the kind of person who reads to learn.
When I was pregnant with my first son, I read all of the books I could on what to expect while pregnant and what to expect after my son was born.
Then, I read books on what to expect during the toddler years and I just keep moving on to new subjects as I faced them.
When I was expecting my second son, I once again turned to the books. Every pregnancy is different and every child is too. Those books got a lot of use.
As my life changes, so does my reading.
Now, I read a lot of children’s books to my children. I try to read them two every night, but sometimes it’s only one.
We used to gather onto the rocking chair my husband bought for me before the kids were born, but as my children have grown, we’ve had to resort to sitting on the bed and reading.
The other night, as I was walking down the hall to have the boys pick out books to read I saw my oldest son, Matthew, 8, reading to his brother, John, 6.
I just watched and listened as Matthew read John his new library books.
I even took a few photos with my phone as their facial expressions changed while they looked at the pictures in the book.
I felt proud of them and I hope they continue to love reading as much as I do.
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