Tuesday, September 09, 2008

Storytime

My daughter and I have a ritual every night. We read a bedtime story together. Sometimes, she reads one page, and then I'll read the next. It's amazing to see how far she's come in her reading and I credit her progress to the wonderful Reading Recovery program that she did in first grade.

It's a special time together, one that I cherish, one that I hope will continue to give her a love of books. After all, that's how I became a writer. I loved books. I loved to go to the library and go through the stacks, trying to find just the right one. When I got older, I'd panic if I had only one book in my TBR pile and I'd have to beg my mom to go to the library again so I could stock up.

There's something powerful about books and stories, and there's something even more powerful about writing them. It's not easy. Sometimes it's hard, even painful. But when we as writers can give someone the ability to escape, to understand, to think, to enjoy...that's incredibly humbling.

Our words have the ability to speak to hundreds if not millions of people. Think of how many lives you can touch. Think of how you can enrich someone's life by your story, your article, your memoir, your novel. And then think back to how many books have enriched your own life in some way. My life has been blessed by so many wonderful stories - great novels, touching memoirs, enlightening histories, and the list goes on and on.

It's a great circle, this literary world. We read, we absorb; we write, we give back.

What an awesome responsibility.

11 comments:

  1. Anonymous9:48 AM

    That's such a wonderful ritual!

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  2. My daughters used to love to be read to, and they've never stopped loving to read. That's a way of giving back, too, those early years of quiet comfort, snuggled close, mom reading softly, turning the pages, looking at pictures. That's where it all begins.

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  3. That sounds lovely. Long may the tradition last. And yes, stories and words are so important - the more we cherish them and encourage others to do so, the better off everyone is.

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  4. Awww...that's wonderful. :)

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  5. Anonymous9:30 PM

    Melissa - thanks for the memories - they are good ones!!! I wish I could hear Molly read :-) Also for the inspiration to write - your entry expressed just how it is for writers so very well.
    God bless you real good daughter of mine :-)
    love,
    Mom

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  6. Seriously, I think that you rock! Awesome ritual!

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  7. Devon - Yes - I'm very glad that we started doing this together. It's a very special time.

    Joanne - Absolutely! It's a wonderful way to bond. I read to her even when she was a baby. :-)

    Tess - I agree. Reading is so very important.

    Michelle - Thanks!

    Mom - I'm so glad you liked my post. :-) I hope it encourages you to keep writing, as well!

    Ell - Thanks!

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  8. This is a great post! Also enjoyed the meme one below. I'm so glad to have found your site!

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  9. Thanks for dropping by, Heidi! Glad you enjoyed the posts. :-)

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  10. This post really touched me. I remember those moments with my mother--and eventually my sister, too--reading together before bed. Long after I was fluently reading by myself we would lay together and take turns each night reading a chapter. Good, good memories. I'm sure your daughter will have the same. (And I blame these reading moments for my current love of writing, too.)

    Thanks for stopping by my site. Hope you'll visit often. I'm adding you to my Bloglines.

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  11. Hi Ami - I'm so glad you stopped by and that this post warmed your heart. :-)

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