Since I was a little girl, I've always loved libraries! The books, the tables, the quiet, the smells, the library cards, the severe sound the stamp made on the card at checkout..even the librarians were included in the conglomeration of the most amazing nouns I've ever known! I'm so grateful to my mom for introducing me to libraries and books. If I had to guess, she started reading to me as I snuggled in her womb.
As I grew up, my mom read to me until I learned to read, then I had to read to her. Sometimes, we'd be in the same room on the opposite ends of the couch, reading. The silence didn't matter to me. What did matter was, I was with her, she was with me, we were with our books and magazines. I did the same for and with my children.
My mom always made sure I had my own library at home. As an adult, every home I've had housed a library or library area. I'll never forget my first book club--the Dr. Seuss Book Club--where the company sent the red or blue book holder and your first book. My mom even made sure I had my very own magazine subscription to "Highlights!" And, I felt so grown up when she gave me my very own library card! To date, our trips to the library together, or being in her library with her, remain some of my best times with my mom.
At school, I loved R.I.F. Week (Reading Is Fundamental) and the Book Fair, and in my neighborhood, the book mobile was better than the ice cream truck! These events introduced me to some of my favorite tomes (at least that's how they appeared to me): Encyclopedia Brown, Amelia Bedelia, The Berenstain Bears and so many more. Then, as a teenager, my mom gave me the V.C. Andrews collection. They were my windows to the world of exploration, imagination, fantasies and definitely possibilities.
With all of the books and reading in my life, although my mother is a librarian, I didn't decide to become one until I saw the movie, "Foul Play," with Goldie Hawn and Chevy Chase. I wanted to be Gloria Mundy so very badly. I even took a library science course at Texas Woman's University while I was there.
In the end though, I became a writer and (now) an English teacher. And I love every moment because, not only do I still get to read books, I get to write them as well. From fiction and poetry, to journalism and literary nonfiction, I love everything about the written word and all that I learn from reading.
Now, I want to expose you to the same! I want you to know that you are much more than the walls that surround you in your homes. You're much more than your neighborhood, your city or even your state. When I say you have the opportunity to be whomever and whatever you want to be, it sounds "cliche'ish", but it's true!
What's stopping you? Whatever you can imagine, read about it, learn about it, learn how to become it. And the best place to start is in a library (or bookstore). Whether that's online or in the physical realm, use words, reading, language, the arts and writing to find out everything you need to know about the world around you and the person inside you...starting now. Right here.
Ase',
Ms. d.
As I grew up, my mom read to me until I learned to read, then I had to read to her. Sometimes, we'd be in the same room on the opposite ends of the couch, reading. The silence didn't matter to me. What did matter was, I was with her, she was with me, we were with our books and magazines. I did the same for and with my children.
My mom always made sure I had my own library at home. As an adult, every home I've had housed a library or library area. I'll never forget my first book club--the Dr. Seuss Book Club--where the company sent the red or blue book holder and your first book. My mom even made sure I had my very own magazine subscription to "Highlights!" And, I felt so grown up when she gave me my very own library card! To date, our trips to the library together, or being in her library with her, remain some of my best times with my mom.
At school, I loved R.I.F. Week (Reading Is Fundamental) and the Book Fair, and in my neighborhood, the book mobile was better than the ice cream truck! These events introduced me to some of my favorite tomes (at least that's how they appeared to me): Encyclopedia Brown, Amelia Bedelia, The Berenstain Bears and so many more. Then, as a teenager, my mom gave me the V.C. Andrews collection. They were my windows to the world of exploration, imagination, fantasies and definitely possibilities.
With all of the books and reading in my life, although my mother is a librarian, I didn't decide to become one until I saw the movie, "Foul Play," with Goldie Hawn and Chevy Chase. I wanted to be Gloria Mundy so very badly. I even took a library science course at Texas Woman's University while I was there.
In the end though, I became a writer and (now) an English teacher. And I love every moment because, not only do I still get to read books, I get to write them as well. From fiction and poetry, to journalism and literary nonfiction, I love everything about the written word and all that I learn from reading.
Now, I want to expose you to the same! I want you to know that you are much more than the walls that surround you in your homes. You're much more than your neighborhood, your city or even your state. When I say you have the opportunity to be whomever and whatever you want to be, it sounds "cliche'ish", but it's true!
What's stopping you? Whatever you can imagine, read about it, learn about it, learn how to become it. And the best place to start is in a library (or bookstore). Whether that's online or in the physical realm, use words, reading, language, the arts and writing to find out everything you need to know about the world around you and the person inside you...starting now. Right here.
Ase',
Ms. d.
RSS Feed