Here I sit, in my favorite spot on the sofa,
enjoying an afternoon of reading
(Written in My Own Heart's Blood,
by Diana Gabaldon)
and freshly brewed coffee,
and pecking away at my beloved laptop.
Some folk (who ARE those people?)
might consider this unexciting or dull,
but not me—NEVER me!
Strenuous activities confound me,
since arthritis has come to reside
in my arms and legs and joints.
But then I always loved reading,
for which I have always been
physically able and emotionally ready!
I remember riding my bike over
to the Austin branch of the
Chicago Public Library, at Central and Race—
This would be the 1950's,
and I could load up my bicycle basket
with a summer's worth of books—
it was called a "Vacation Loan".
What a treat!
Plain bound books, no cover art,
didn't matter—
they were beautiful and colorful to me….
No special library reading programs
or cute children's library areas,
but it was heavenly.
Just the inky smell of all those words,
floating in all those books,
a world of escape with every page….
like my first foray into
the delicious world of mystery fiction—
Nancy Drew still rivals Miss Marple…
I listen to books whenever I'm in the car.
I end my day, every day, with some reading
—indeed until the books drops to the floor,
and I am literally nodding off!
My Arlington Heights Libraryoffers a decadent service
in which I freely indulge:a drive-by pickup window!
My favorite quote about reading, which adorns my email signature,
was voiced by my beloved Louisa May Alcott.
A beautifully illustrated edition of Little Women,
my favorite book since I received it for Christmas,
when I was eight, graces my permanent home library.
Fiction reading was considered damaging
to the delicate feminine constitution pre-20th Century:
“She is too fond of books, and it has turned her brain.”
I am so happy for all that frivolous brain-turning!
