Thankfulness Challenge - Day 10

It is the weekend and I feel like it's the only time that I'm allowed to breathe at my own pace.

Breathe In….. with the good.

Breathe Out….. with the bad.
Repeat.

Not only are weekends important because they allow me the chance to go into emergency shut down and reboot my body and mind for the next week but this past weekend was extra special. Sunday was my mom’s birthday! My mom has done millions of mom things that have made me who I am today. Growing up I received rules and home training like others kids but my brother and I also had a list of rules that existed for literature. It's probably some of the best lessons that she passed on to her children and now she’s doing the same for her grandchildren. She instilled in us a sense of reverence when it comes to books and we were always encouraged to read. Most people find God behind the stained glass windows of a church, but I do most of my worshipping in the hushed tones and antique smells of a library.

So maybe it's not so surprising that reading has become one of my quick escape hatches from the real world, into the Inner Realm of Golden. I love it when I can get so lost in a book, that I experience a kind of culture shock. When I look up and realize that the world I'm reading about isn't the world that surrounds me. It can be sad to realize these people that you have invested such time, laughter and tears with aren't really even people but fictional characters. It can be especially heartbreaking if you have been with these friends through a series of books. It leaves you with a kind of literary hangover and you have to wait a while before you start another book to allow yourself time to heal.

My mom taught me that no matter what you think about a book, even if it is in direct opposition to your personal beliefs you do not destroy or throw away a book. That is someone's art. If it is offensive to your taste then pass it to someone else. Art forms are not mandated to be pleasing to all. This is a lesson I constantly find myself repeating to my niece as she grows.

So for this day I am thankful for books. I'm thankful that I have always been encouraged to read and that I have had access to books. I am thankful for the relief from reality that they have provided me throughout my life, thankful to my mom for passing on her passion of books and hell even to Levar Burton for his contribution to literacy in little Golden's life.

Golden's favorite books, you know those that help me checkout of reality include ...

1. To Kill A Mockingbird -Harper Lee

2. Harry Potter Series -JK Rowling
3. Shadow Hunters series -Cassandra Clare
4. Much Ado About Nothing -William Shakespeare
5. Calvin & Hobbes comics -Bill Watterson
6. The Princess Bride -William Goldman
7. Wicked -Gregory McGuire

These are books that I could, and often do, read repeatedly. Maybe if you are looking for book-cation™ from reality you can check one of these out and transport yourself to another place, time, and reality.

The bottom line is put down the remote, put down the cell phone and READ it does a body and mind good!

-golden (@theonlygolden)