I don't know about you, but when the New Year rolled around this past January, I was DONE with making resolutions that I knew I'd drop before February arrived. I typically made resolutions to get in better shape, made smart diet decisions, etc. While these are admirable, they just weren't working out for me. Don't get me wrong, over several decades of attempts there have been some small changes that are becoming habits. But overall, I was completely bored with those resolutions.
I had joined a book club a few months before the holiday season, and even though it had fallen apart I found myself missing that experience of reading a book I'd probably never look at twice and discussing it among peers. As I examined my overflowing bookshelf, I noticed I had books that had been on that shelf since I was in high school. Some, possibly longer. And I couldn't for the life of me remember if I'd actually ever read them. If I had, I didn't have any recollection of what they were about or what I had thought about them. Which is insane, when you think about it! Who keeps dozens and dozens of books that they haven't even read and NEVER READS THEM?!
So I got on Pinterest and checked out 2017 Reading Challenges. Most of the books I owned definitely did not fit the profile, so naturally I bought a bunch of new books to add to the giant stack of books I already owned. You can never have too many books, right??
Throughout the year I've gotten through about 9 books, maybe a few more that I've forgotten along the way. Here's the list of the books I've read:
Things Fall Apart - Chinua Achebe
An Abundance of Katherines - John Green
The Art of Racing in the Rain - Garth Stein
The Devil in the White City
Savvy - Ingrid Law
Revival - Stephen King
The Good Girl - Mary Kubica
And most recently:
And the Mountains Echoed - Khalid Hosseini
This book will likely be the first book that I "review," but first I wanted to hash out why I'm going so far as to create a blog. I haven't decided if I'll go back through the books listed and write about them. That's TBD!
So...Why A Blog??
Mostly for the reason I mentioned before. I enjoyed discussing a book as I read it. I like to dissect the characters, the situations, all of it! I enjoy sharing my reactions and opinions. So that brings me to my first rule:
THERE WILL BE SPOILERS!!!
And, since I am human, I should also say that there will be times that I won't feel like reading. I have two daughters, a tremendously amazing fiance, the best dog in the world, and a full time job. I enjoy baking, crafting, football, and a dozen other things, so sometimes reading for fun feels like a chore. When it does, I'll put the books away and share about the rest. We have a crazy, fun, and never boring life in our apartment. But for the most part, I have a pretty open window of opportunity to read. During my weeks with my daughters I have nearly a full hour before work to read, and I almost always read during my lunches. I'm sure I'm viewed as socially awkward for always having my nose in a book, but lets be honest...I really don't care!
Another reason is because, during the 10 months of this reading challenge I've remembered one of my most fierce passions in life. Ask anyone in high school that knew me fairly well and they'll tell you that my one passion, the one thing I couldn't wait to become, was a mother. But what a very select few knew was that I wanted to write. I toyed with it a lot and still somewhere in my closet, hidden deep inside a Rubbermaid container, are all of the 3-ring binders that contain every story idea I've ever had. In these, my love of writing was discovered, honed, and toyed with. For nearly 20 years (ish), and to the annoyance of any significant others that I've lived with, I've hung on to these binders in hopes of discovering that intense desire again. There have been waves over the years and attempts made to finish stories, but now it's different. With time, I've becomes wise to the probability that I'll never be famous, or possibly even published, and it has taken me 31 years to realize that is okay.
With my fiance, Toby, I've discovered that they had a writer in the family who left his work to his kids, and even let them illustrate a book of his poetry. And for me, that is what is important. When I'm gone (which I pray to God is many, many decades from now), I want them to have my work, whatever that may be. I want them to have a piece of me that they can carry with them always. Memories can fade, written words can last forever.
This morning I woke up with that same spark I remembered from my teen years. As I laid there all wrapped up in my comforter, my mind raced with ideas of what to put on my blog. And then it switched over to a story I've been tossing around in my head, and then just as quickly switched to what book I'll be choosing to read next. Instead of ignoring the spark and rolling over to get a few more hours of sleep, I just got up. Our dog, Hamilton, was thumping his tail up against my leg and nuzzling me with his cold, wet nose, so that helped motivate me out of bed.
My oldest daughter was up as well, of course. She could stay up until 2AM and wake up bright eyed and bushy tailed at 7AM, every day of the week. She joined me as I took Hamilton out for a walk and I told her about my blog, and that I want to start writing again. Bless her sweet soul, she was so enthusiastic. The words "awesome" and "cool" were used numerous times! While Hamilton sniffed the freshly fallen leaves around our apartment complex, she asked me why I hadn't done any writing before now if I had wanted to so badly, and I told her that I didn't want to miss out on any of my time with them. She took on a very familiar tone and said "Um, excuse me, you have us for two whole weeks, you're allowed to take some time for writing!!" I don't know how she became so wise at the age of 8, but I think my heart nearly broke out of my chest.
So here we begin. Maybe no one will read this blog with the exception of my ever expanding, crazy supportive family. Maybe somewhere in the midst of my reading challenge and new blog, I'll find that something inside of me and finally be able to put it down in words. I'm not going to push it.
For now, I'm just going to work my way through my bookshelf and rediscover how much I loved losing myself to the pages and entering a thousand new worlds without leaving my little world.
