I am a reader. As a child I had trouble spelling, and for the longest time thought my name "Rebecca" was actually "reader." Reading is not a pastime, a hobby, or a chore. I read for the same reason that I breathe: because I can, and because life works much better if I do. Reading helps me feel at peace as an individual, but also as a member of the larger society I inhabit. Even on a GAP year where I spend 90% of my day serving others, I make sure that I spend at least an hour a day with my nose in a book.
The type of book really doesn't matter. I'm much more interested in the subject matter than the genre. So far this year I've read spiritual essays, books exploring faith and housing crises in Detroit, and books on the history of racial discrimination at home and abroad. One of the best parts of being on a gap year in Ann Arbor is that I have the freedom to read what interests me, and I'm surrounded by people who keep giving me books :)
Right now I'm re-reading The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. GOW was the first novel I wrote a research paper on. I was 16, and read the novel because I didn't understand why Bruce Springsteen (my favorite musician) wrote The Ghost of Tom Joad. Through researching the history of the Great Depression and Steinbeckian literary analysis I fell madly in love with both American history and literature. (I also fell a little out of love with Springsteen who based TGOTJ on the Tom Ford film vs. Steinbeck's novel. Lame.)
Looking back, this novel laid the groundwork for my studies at university as a history and literature major. Re-reading it now is helping me mourn the loss of my student identity, and helping me work on the jealousy I'm feeling of my housemates as they prepare for their final exams. While I don't miss the stress that comes with paper and exam due dates, I do miss reading and writing about the human experience.
I guess I'm just going to have to start blogging more frequently.
