I love reading. I have loved reading for as long as I can remember. It started when I was young, when my parents introduced me to books like "Moo Baa La La La" by Sandra Boynton and "The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and The Big Hungry Bear" by Don and Audry Wood, and was only expanded as my elementary school teachers introduced me to characters like Junie B. Jones and Anne Shirley. As I got older, I realized that not everyone loves to read. In fact, most people don't even like to read (I know, crazy right?!). So when I have my nose stuck in a book, I often hear "Why do you like reading so much?" That, my dear readers, is what I am here to explain.

I love reading because I can escape the horrors of the world. I'm writing this as the election is happening, and I was definitely reading "Searching for God Knows What" by Donald Miller before I picked up my laptop. Reading opens your eyes and reminds you that not everything in the world is terrible and scary.

I read because it allows me to run away, even if only for a brief moment. I can go Hogwarts, Panem, Camp Half-Blood, Green Gables, or the Shire by simply cracking open a book. How cool is that?! To an outsider watching me delve deeper into any given story, I look pretty average. What they don't know is that in my head, I am helping Harry Potter battle Voldemort. I am stealing forbidden books with Liesl Meminger. I am shooting arrows with Katniss. I am figuring out how to beat the other armies with Ender Wiggin. When I read, I become something more than a college student. For an hour or so, I get to be a hero. Don't we all deserve to be heroes for a little bit?

Reading allows me to travel through time. Oh yes, readers are time travelers, it's one of our best secrets. See, when you read a really good book, the world around you dissolves and you are in the story. You read faster and faster as the action intensifies, your heart starts pounding as your favorite characters finally kiss, you grip the book harder as you see the story coming to a peak... and it's the best thing ever. I have gone to 1908 Prince Edward Island, post-apocalyptic America, World War II Nazi Germany, and so many more incredible places I want everyone to visit.

Fun fact: Readers also have the ability to go to different dimensions. Didn't know that, did you? Or maybe you're like me and you know perfectly well that reading gives you the ability to dimension hop. Maybe you know that you can go to Narnia, Battle School, the Shire, Hogwarts, and Wonderland all before dark. You know that magic works in some places, but it's just really advanced science in others. You know that sometimes you get to wear a silver battle suit, and other times you wear jeans, an orange Camp Half-Blood t-shirt, and a clay bead necklace, and that your attire depends entirely on where you are.

I read because I find little pieces of myself scattered in the stories I read. No matter what world I decide to dive into, I know that there will be a character who reminds me of myself. I read because it helps me to make life decisions. Believe it or not, certain books have given me the advice I needed to hear in order to make important choices. I read because it's like going home. After a long day, you can crack open your favorite novel and the characters are right there where you left them. The characters don't change, they don't move away, they don't leave you in the dust. The stories and the characters we love so much never leave us. No matter what might be going on in our lives, our favorite stories will always be there to welcome us home. That, my dear friends, is why I love reading.