Thoughtful

Growing up, I was always reading.  I loved The Boxcar Children, The Babysitter's Club, and whatever I could find in the library.

I remember one time in third grade, I was reading my most recent book after finishing my classwork, and I looked up to find that the classroom was empty.  Understandably, I was confused until I realized it was recess.  That meant that I had missed the very noisy, old-fashioned clanging bell that dismissed us to recess and called us back in when it was over.  I was so involved in my book, that I didn't even hear it.

In Missouri, elementary students in fourth through sixth grade have the opportunity to read from a list of books and then vote on their favorite.  The winning book across the state receives the Mark Twain Readers Award.  I participated in this in fourth and fifth grade, and then in sixth grade, I, and a few others from my school, were chosen to read from a larger list and we chose the ones we liked best.  Our votes, combined with others across the state, were used to compile the final reading list.

My senior year of high school, I had the opportunity to work in the school library a few hours a week.  I checked books in and out, replaced them on the shelves, and read.  A lot.

In college, that really came to a grinding halt.  My school was very reading heavy, so if I was reading, it was nonfiction.  And, I never would have thought this when I was younger, but there's really only so much reading a person can do, especially if people are wanting you to be social.  I read almost no fiction.

I had to be careful about picking up a fiction book because the few times that I did, I didn't read much else until I finished.  I remember checking out The Oath by Frank Peretti from the library on a Friday afternoon when classes were over.  I barely emerged from the book until I was finished.  Homework was ignored, but it was wonderful.

Reading a story was an opportunity to get out my life and get into another life, whether it is realistic or not.  As much as I loved my life in college and love my life now, stepping into a different life or a different world feels great.

I wrote a post last year about reading Christian fiction.  Read it if you like, and tell me here why you like reading fiction, Christian or otherwise.