“For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, stiff squares of paper world after world unfolds, worlds that sing to you, comfort and love. tranquility. or it excites you”. -Anne Lamott, bird by bird
Whether you grew up with a book in tow or recently fell in love with reading, we can all agree that books are an important part of learning, dreaming, and acting. Why, then, can picking up a book be so difficult? How many times have you claimed to be an avid reader, but when someone asks you what you’re currently up to, you blush and say, “Oh, I haven’t had much time for that lately, with work and…” However, that night you watch the seconds count down until the next episode begins or you scroll down your newsfeed for the hundredth time. Perhaps we turn away from a book and reach for the remote, or the phone, or the computer, because of the emotional engagement that reading something requires.
Whatever it is, it’s time to take back the reins and commit to reading. Commit to the books on your shelf waiting to be dusted off. Commit to titles you haven’t discovered yet. Engage with authors you consider yourself a fan of, but have only read half of one of their books. Commit to your claim to be a reader for life.
Here are 20 commitments I’m making. Why not make a kind of manifesto of your own?
1. I will make reading part of my daily habits. I’ll make time for it like I do for showering and walking the dog.
2. I will find a new author who speaks directly to me and I will read everything he has written.
3. I will research what and who my favorite authors read and I will read them too.
4. I will always have something to read with me. Whether it’s a book, a reading app, a newspaper or an online diary marked as my home page.
5. I will read aloud to someone I love.
6. I will give each book a chance.
7. I will not waste my time on a book I don’t like after I have been given the chance.
8. I won’t criticize a book I don’t like if someone else is trying it out.
9. I will open a book. I will close my computer. I’m going to silence my phone.
10. I will put a book on top of my TV remote so that the decision is intentional, rather than the usual.
11. I will go back to reading my favorite books as easily as I go back to watching my favorite movies.
12. I will read anything that interests me: Novels, poetry, genre fiction, self-help, old letters, memoirs, etc.
13. I will buy books by local authors at local bookstores.
14. I will not lend my most beloved books. I will buy a copy for the friend who asks for it.
15. I will ask people I know and people I don’t know what they are reading. I will write the titles and authors and look them up.
16. I will go to the library and pick up a book, just by its cover.
17. I will always have another book ready when I get close to the end of my current reading.
18. I will listen to an audio version of a book I have already read, just to see how different it feels.
19. I will read with a pen. I will mark the sections that move me. I will underline the words that catch me.
20. I will write down my favorite passages, just to experience how the words feel as they are written.
Inspired by Austin Kleon’s https://medium.com/show-your-work/33-thoughts-on-reading-9fa9dd2be07c
