When I
was a child a popular saying was, “reading is fundamental”. They never said
fundamental to what, but nevertheless it took hold. Now it is one of my
favorite sayings to use as a hash-tag.
With
modern technology used so often in the classroom these days there are no more
chalkboards. Instead they are using smart boards. I am from the era where you
fought with your classmates over whose turn it was to wash the chalk off the
board before you went home. Yep I breathed in chalk and asbestos that are
probably still in my lungs, seemed exciting at the time. I have no proof of
course but these things make me wonder why I have chronic migraines. I also
work near Ground Zero. Just sayin.
Back in
the late eighties when I was in elementary school technology wasn’t present
until I was in the fifth grade. At that time we had a gigantic “state of the
art” computer for all forty plus of us to share. A year later I would learn how
to type on a typewriter. I wonder what year they received their big computer.
The only
thing I remember doing on the computer was to play the game of the day, Oregon
Trail. If all of your mules and kids didn’t die you won the game. Unfortunately
I never did. Thinking about that game makes me yearn for an era where good
clean fun was desired and provided.
Prior to
fifth grade the big excitement in a classroom was one of two things. The first
was a classmate’s birthday. That meant their parent or relative was bringing in
cupcakes for an afternoon celebration. That was almost as good as it being your
birthday.
Coming in
second place, there was the arrival of the Scholastic box.
For those
of you who will never know that joy sadly, I will explain. Once a month we took
home a paper catalog of books and other products you could order through the
school. When the box came that day everyone waited patiently and silently to
hear your name called out so you could walk to the front of the class and
retrieve your goods.
You had
to pray that you were getting something that month, if you weren’t it was
devastating to be there and just watch. But when it was your day it was like
Christmas morning. I remember getting joke telling books, fancy pencils with
cool erasers, as well as scratch and sniff stickers to decorate my black and
white (they didn’t come in colors back then) composition books. Some days the
book I would get created an excited anxious feeling in me so strong until I
began to read it.
I still
feel that when I read a description of a book I just have to read based on a
review or recommendation. Now when my books arrive in Amazon boxes I still feel
like a kid in grade school. I am still open the package with a high level of
nervous yet excited energy. I carefully open the box, handle my new precious
gift with care, and get cracking reading it. I feel sorry for those who have
never known that joy. It is one of my ultimate favorite things to do after
writing of course.
There
have been so many books that I read that changed the course of my life. They
may have affected my behavior, levels of compassion, or my discourse. They are
the books I still think about no matter how long ago I read them. They are the
ones I will never throw out as I hope to have one of the best personal
libraries around. Mine will definitely need one of those tall ladders you move
back and forth along the shelves. I can picture that room all so clearly in my
head. The only thing I have to do in the meantime is to continue reading.
I have
decided to share with my readers those books that are so important to me during
the many phases of my life and learning. I get plenty of info from movies and
TV, but really there isn’t anything quite like a good book with a big hot cup
of coffee next to it.
Hence we
shall begin at the beginning.
Right off
the top of my head two children’s series come right to mind. The first being,
The Berenstain Bears. Those books were packed so tightly in a large draw in my
house. I think I had just about every one when I was growing up. They were a
family of four (eventually) and had morals in each individual story. Kids learn
how to behave and why while being entertained. I have saved all of my books for
my future children and love buying them as presents for the new generation. I
just read recently that the series has been taken over by the son of the
original authors, Mr. and Mrs. Berenstain. Now they are apparently a less
secular family of bears.
The next
is probably my favorite of all time, until I became an adult. Her name was Cam
Jansen and she set out to solve a few mysteries or two. I don’t right off
remember any titles or plot lines just that I loved them. That was around the
time Nancy Drew and Beverly Clearly were at the height of their fame. I never
read either of those for some reason but that does sound like me. Once I know
what I like I stick with it.
Another
hugely popular series for preteens was the Babysitters Club. They were the end
all be all of series until maybe Twilight or Harry Potter but I definitely
didn’t read those nor do I have any plans to.
The
Babysitters Club was pure genius. I remember the first three or four came in a
pack and my cousins and I were racing to read through them all. Those were on
my nightstand for many years. The series ultimately had one hundred thirty one
of the original title and one hundred twenty two of the spin-off series Little
Sister. There was also a television show and movie made based on this series
but I don’t believe I saw either.
If I can
return to the fifth grade for a moment, I remember reading My Girl that year
and finishing the book in school. It was the first time a book made me weep
openly in public. This has continued to be a pattern in my life. I have cried
because of a book on planes, trains, and buses. I try to cover my mouth and not
shout out loud when I am shocked by a plot twist. That is the best I can do.
There is no shame in my game. If I am genuinely moved my emotions pour out. It
is like a spiritual experience for me.
By the
time I got to college I rarely read anything that wasn’t assigned to me.
Reading for fun wasn’t a concept again for me until well after grad school. I
think I had post-traumatic stress from reading a book per class per week for
all that time. I have spent the last few years healing from this issue as well
as learning to live with my chronic migraines. This has allowed more time for
reading for pure pleasure only. This has become so important to me I don’t know
how I lasted so long without doing it. Either way I was learning from what I
was reading which is always what I am seeking to do one way or the other.
A book I
was assigned in my Italian American sociology class was by the infamous author
Mario Puzo but it wasn’t The Godfather, although I would read that eventually.
Compared to the movie it is light-years ahead in terms of substance. The book I
am talking about is called The Fortunate Pilgrim and is about an Italian
American family’s struggle to achieve their piece of the American dream. It was
so good I made my mother read it as well.
The
professor was the reason I read another classic, Tuesdays with Morrie. You see
my professor was and still is my personal Morrie. The book by Mitch Albom was
subsequently made into a TV movie and Off Broadway play that I took my dad to.
It was an amazing story come to life. The lessons Mitch learns are the ones we
all need to learn before it’s too late.
From
there my preferences during the summer of my college years was mostly all from
the self-help section. It began because of a book I borrowed from a close
friend. It was Dave Pelzer’s first book about the horrific tales of his
childhood. A Child Called It, is a book that changed my life for sure. It was
the first story that I read about such acts that seemed unimaginable to me. It
was the kind of book that made me realize no matter what you have gone through
you can still be the person you want to be. You can still turn your life
around. Your past does not have to
define your future. Perhaps it was the reason I became so interested in true
crimes stories later on and the effects they have on those involved.
As
difficult as that read was, I couldn’t get enough information about the
subject. This was pre-Google when I used the internet solely to check my AOL
email. In a way that was better. Nowadays I would have been up straight for
days on end researching until I could no longer stay awake.
However
back then I just had to wait for the next book in the series of about four I
think that I read. Those books brings Dave’s story through his adulthood and
his life at that time.
Here is a
brief clip of Dave telling his snippet of his tale:
I haven’t
thought about this story in a long time. But once I did it all came flooding
back to me. I have kept Dave’s books and feel they are due a reread sometime
soon. I am curious how I will interrupt the story at this stage in my life. If
anything I assume I will just be more impressed with his journey and all the
good he continues to do. He appears to have remained the motivational speaker
and writer I grew to know and admire.
As Dave
Pelzer says, “you don't get over it, just accept it”.
Stayed
tuned, For the Books That Have Impacted My Life Part II.
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