... reading that is.
Confession: Until about a month ago, I hadn't read a book since Cooper was born-
more than five years! This is saying something considering that
up until that time, I read like it was going out of style.
When I was growing up, going to bed merely meant staying up to read until my Mom came over the intercom to make me go to sleep. I loved the "Spring Forward" time change because I could justify reading another hour. In college, there were lots of real books in-between all the textbooks and when I lived in my own cozy little house, if I wasn't scrapbooking, I was reading.
I loved reading- it was a truly big part of who I was...
And now I think I can say that in the present tense again... it's a big part of who I AM.
I took Stephanie Nielsen's book along on our trip to Island Park and ate it up sitting in the shade of our camp. For the first time, my boys were able to be playing around with cousins, rather than needing to be so close to me. And then, as soon as we rented The Hunger Games, I knew I'd be reading the next two books. I sat on the couch with the boys tucked in bed and read until I knew I just couldn't manage to stay up any later. It felt SO good, for the most part...
The big difference between my reading self then and now- well... just about everything. I wasn't neglecting anything when I read during lunch hours or on the bus ride home. There wasn't anyone needing a peanut butter sandwhich or handing me an action figure and wanting me to play along when I was curled up with a book in my own little house.
But now, I would be and there is.
Reading nowadays really just means I'm putting off something else, or at least feel like I am. Laundry, dishes, my children's childhood- none of that was battling for my attention back in the day.
So why does it actually feel good, then? I honestly- really and truly- enjoy playing with my boys. And getting the dishes or laundry done, while not my idea of fun whatsoever, does have a definite degree of accomplishment and satisfaction. But, I also really and truly believe that all of those things, and everything else that is involved with the selfless job of being a wife and Mom, take on more satisfaction and joy when they are mingled with time for Self too. That's why a lot of us blog, right? Because when we have something that is ours, we can better see all the selflessness as a blessing rather than a burden.
And so, with the whole story of Katniss Everdeen wrapped up,
I'm searching for my next good read. :) Any suggestions??
