A Book

Is there any greater treasure than a book? Paige, my late wife, and my daughter, both logged many hours as Elementary school teachers; were laser-focused on books. They said, “give a child a book Any book, and it unlocks myriad galaxies—for life.” Some folks try to ban books. Banning a book is like daming up a stream just because you don’t want it to soak your shoes. I have always loved books. I saw a Meme on Facebook–a stylized picture of a bookmobile emblazoned with “The Banded Book Bus—-headed to conservative neighborhoods.”

My grandmother, an elementary school teacher, sent books to me and my sister on special occasions—birthdays, Christmas, Easter, or for no reason at all. When I was a student at Emory University, my constant expense, beyond tuition, was books—- (other that textbooks.)! I keep at least one book in my car, in case I have to wait somewhere; and there are books everywhere in my house.

Decades ago, Johnny Standley had a comedy routine called “Little Bo Peep,” in which he did a running, humorously torqued commentary on Little Bo Peep, ending each line, saying “—It’s in the book!”—each time leaving the audience in stitches. A good book—even entertaining books authenticate much of life’s experience. Of course, simply because “Its in the book,” doesn’t make it true, accurate, or enduring per se. Nevertheless, reading can do wonders for a person’s mental, emotional, and social processes.

I find it interesting that banning a book tends to whet appetites for reading that very book. Psychologists call this phenomenon, “paradoxical intervention”. It can be accidental—as in book banning—or intentional, as when a parent cannot stand a child’s new hair color, praises it—in hope it will drive the kid to change it—hoping to annoy the parent by doing that very thing.

Of course you wouldn’t stuff your reading time with trash, anymore than you would go into a grocery store on a limited budget stuffing your cart with shiny, cheap, trashy material. Books are like that; the budget you have is time. A day has only 24 hours, and no one knows how many days one has. So, choice enters the picture. At my age, and I’m older than dirt, I am still learning to read–better, more efficiently (not “speed-reading” a contradiction in terms), and more productively.

The best books enlighten the soul. It is interesting that the eyes serve a major role in character development; what you see, and process becomes a part of you; —depending on how you process it. In turn, the eyes reflect your character—the person you have become. Jesus pointed that out. The concept is underscored by Psychologist, William James; A (person) is literally what he thinks, his character being the complete sum of all his thoughts. Ponder that!

©Copyright Willis H. Moore 2023