Without Books...

...where would we be???  This question comes to mind often for me, but it does so even more when I'm in the midst of a really good read.  I'm currently reading An Uncommon Education by Elizabeth Percer.  It's one of those books that proves really difficult to put down at night.  My eyes begin to feel like the 20 pound weights in the corner of the room have taken up residence in their lids.  It's steeped in culture, history, creativity and everything in between.  The complexities encountered by this ambitious, fictional character's life are so relatable, even real.  Her world becomes mine for that half hour or 45 minutes I can spare before passing out for slumber.

So, it's times like these that I truly wonder where we would all be without books.  It doesn't matter whether you are a "reader" or not.  At some point in your life, the mechanics of reading and the power of imagination has touched you.  Have you had to problem solve?  Have you had to come up with some creative solution to an impossible question?  Not life-and-death matters.  I refer simply to every day.  Misplace a crucial item but have a deadline or need to be somewhere like work?  Your brain automatically rushes into resolution mode.  Elements of this process are found really early on when you're young and you learn of cartoon characters and their infinite portfolio of crazy circumstances.  Or you learn the fundamentals as your parents sit with you as a young child and read you a short story, and then a fairytale and then hand a novel to you so that you can read it to them.  These are all examples of the seeds being planted before we even know that we'll need the resulting fruits.

So, tomorrow, when you encounter the inevitable challenge of the day, take a quick moment to appreciate the roots of your ability to navigate the challenge.  And if you have little ones around, offer them the seeds.  Some day, somewhere, they will look back and be eternally grateful.