Ever since I was little, the love to read just came naturally to me. To hear something like this from a child is complete blasphemy. I would even look at books as toys sometimes if they just looked pretty to me.
My bookshelf that I shared with my sisters would always be stocked with Dr. Seuss and Little Golden Books that I would just find myself pulling out of the shelf once in a while. The point that I am trying to make is that this hobby is usually rare among children, and I didn't find out why I was so fascinated by books until I was older.
As I've said, books became a vital accessory of mine in childhood. Whenever I went on a seemingly long car ride, a book would be a good form of entertainment for me (although I would often get nauseous while reading in motion).
I would even consider vacation the perfect time to read a good book, bringing up to five books to read beside the pool or on the beach. From watching my sister's softball games on the sidelines to hanging out at my grandparents' house, a book seemed like a good pastime.
Not only is actually reading the book a good pastime but looking for the right book definitely has its fun, too. Growing up just five minutes away from the nearest Barnes and Nobles made it super convenient for me to go book-exploring. Just that smell, when you walk into a bookstore, is overwhelmingly pleasant.
(And if you don't know what I'm even talking about, then you don't have that love for books.)
The endless rows and shelves of possibilities that you can pick the next perfect book for yourself is a thrilling thought for any book-lover, and this is part of what reminds me why I love books so much.
In retrospect, books became what would be the alternative form of television for me. I was by no means deprived of having a television or the Disney VHS and DVD collections, but books were another source of what those things provided me with. Whether it would be because I would get tired of watching a screen for hours on end or my sensitive eyes would start to hurt, a book would turn into another television set for me.
This realization that I have had in recent years made me understand why I love books so much; it is a form of entertainment, but it is is also one that you immerse yourself in completely.
Only the reader can convey what the words written on paper mean and then transfer it to their own mind by creating the image of what they think is happening. I don't know if that is by nature or this is just how I operate while reading, but if you think about it, that is as mind-blowing as some of the things we actually read.
With every book I read, whether it be about history or completely fictional, a memoir or a mystery-thriller, I live out these adventures that are written by a total stranger. Sometimes I love the book, and other times I find myself disappointed in the fact that I decided to invest so much time in reading one I didn't enjoy. If you think about it, this kind of resembles life: there will be adventures endured (exciting ones and the everyday occurrences) and sometimes we won't like them, but they will make us appreciate the good ones.
I have realized that I won't get to live out all these amazing adventures that I read and hear about myself, but if reading them is the closest I'll get to living out some of them in my own picturesque way, then I'll definitely take it.
