Reading is Boring and Pointless?

Recently, my sister mentioned that her boys don't understand why reading is so important. She asked me how to explain to her boys, the importance of reading.

Immediately, my mind came up with a million reasons and I needed to write them all down and then my other sister responded with even more great reasons and now I have so many reasons to share but not enough time. 

And, since they hate reading, I can't make this very long. So, this is for you Jake! FIVE reasons why reading is important in no particular order.

1. Reading is a way to learn about new people, places and things. My favorite quote about reading comes from George R.R. Martin. It was hanging in my class from the first day I became a teacher, he said, “A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies . . . The man who never reads lives only one.” I loved this article from The Curious Reader about how reading allows us to have all the feelings that our characters have even if we haven't experienced them ourselves. 

In my readings, have traveled to Europe, Asia, Africa and places on this earth I may never actually visit in real life. I have read about wars, triumphs and celebrations that I will never personally experience. I have been friends with some of the most amazing humans I will never meet in this life.  When we learn about why others think and act, it helps us understand each other. When we understand each other, we are more forgiving and kind. Reading makes us better humans.

When my daughter was small, she enjoyed reading books about children with disabilities similar to hers. It helped her realize there were other kids out there like her. When I wanted to understand the Holocaust, I immersed myself in books like Night, by Elie Weisel or The Diary of a Girl by Ann Frank. As a young girl, I learned about what "coming of age" meant by reading Mrs. Mike by Benedict and Nancy Freeman. 

I figure if I've read 10 books a year over the last 40 years, I've lived about 400 lives. I think that is a low estimate but you get the point. 

2. Reading makes you smart...or at least sound smart. The smartest people I know are well read, they are business owners, athletes, stay at home moms and come from all walks of life. Some of the richest people are avid readers too so I guess when you know more, you do more.  

When you are well read, you have a naturally larger vocabulary. You have knowledge of a variety of topics from government to travel to medicine to finances to relationships and so much more. Think about the number of famous people who have their own book clubs - Oprah and Reese Witherspoon, to name just two. Off the top of my head, I know that Bill Gates is an avid reader as well as the founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezos. How do I know this? I read. 

I guarantee that every President of the United States or foreign leader has been or is currently a reader.

In an article from cnbc.com, they quoted Warren Buffet saying, "...he starts every morning by poring over several newspapers and estimates he spends as much as 80 percent of his day reading." Do you know who Warren Buffet is? I'd like to have 10% of his wealth. You want to be rich? Powerful? Smart? Read. Read everything you can get your hands on.  

To add on to this point, when you are a good reader, you are a better writer. You know how to use your words to get your point across, create a mood or persuade someone to change their mind. It happens naturally and they go hand in hand. 

3. Reading is an escape. Sometimes the crap going on in the world is too much for me and I need a break from reality. I love a good sappy romance, even the kind that is so predictable, where I can turn the page and tell you what is about to happen. Sometimes we need to turn our brains off and rest from the daily pressures. It doesn't have to be romance either, it can be travel, sci fi, adventure or history, just reading something takes you out of your current situation even if momentarily. 

Lebron James reads during the NBA playoffs. In an article by nbcsports, he said, "...during the postseason, everything is about the games. Everything is about the matchup and the team that you’re playing and the city that you’re in. I needed some moments where I could just get a different perspective — escape.” As a coach myself, I can almost guarantee this makes him a better athlete. 

Reading allows my mind to turn off from the stress and anxiety of the day and relax. It's literally how I fall asleep at night. I think it is why I dream so vividly too, because my mind isn't focused on the things that keep it spinning a million miles an hour, it has time to use its imagination. Maybe that's just me, I don't know, but I have some of the most awesome dreams and I'm sure it's because I read. 

4. Reading keeps your mind sharp. This goes along with being smart, but when we stay active, we keep our brains engaged and working. In an article from NYTimes, they called it  "mental gymnastics." This makes sense on a physical level because the more active we keep our bodies, the longer they last and the better they work (most of the time). Why not apply this to our brains? 

Along with having a sharp brain, when we are reading, we should be looking at everything with a critical eye which is part of having a sharp brain. For example, why did the author say that? What was the purpose in adding that detail? Who wrote this and how does he have the authority to talk about this? Thinking about those things helps you realize the author's purpose. Sometimes the purpose isn't just to entertain or inform, maybe they are trying to persuade you. But, do you believe them?

Question everything!

Don't take what you read as the gospel truth, especially if you read it on the internet. The people who take the time to write something worth publishing in print form are more likely to be the kind of authors I want to read. Read both sides of the spectrum. If you read about the Republican policy on gun issues, read the Democrat side too. Form your own opinions and own them because of the reading you've done. This is lacking in our world today.

This is one of the reasons I think satire is so underrated. I love it when I see someone post an article from a website like Babylon Bee or The Onion and all the comments read as if the article was true when it was never intended to be. Young people often don't catch this because they aren't critically thinking about the article itself and the information contained inside.  

5. Reading teaches focus. As a teacher, I've discovered that teenagers today don't have the attention span to read more than the minimum characters allowed on a Twitter post. They say they "can't read" when the truth is, their brains have only been trained to read snippets and nothing much longer. They share articles on their social media feeds that they don't really agree with because they didn't read the article, just the title. Notice the title of this post? I caught your attention with it, didn't I? 

When we focus on what we're reading, we increase our comprehension of what is going on too. It takes practice and some people aren't willing to put in the time. This is going to help you in all your subjects in school or projects at your job or at home. You might actually clear all the dishes, rinse and load them into the dishwasher, wipe the counters AND sweep the floor when your mom asks you to instead of her having to remind you every step of the way because you are learning to focus on one task at a time. 

This is going to be a benefit to you whether you want to be a billionaire business owner or live in your mom's basement the rest of your life (because you will always have to figure out how to get along with your mom, ya bum!) 

Well Jake, sorry that got so long. I'm passionate about reading and its benefits. You may not see it after one book or even two, but I promise that down the road, you are going to thank me. When you do, I hope it sounds like, "Thanks Aunt Stacy, for helping me see how important reading is. Because of you, I'm a billionaire and here's a couple hundred thousand dollars as a way of showing my appreciation." 

Want more information on the importance of reading? Here are a few links:

Cool quotes

University of the People, a free college? I don't know much about it but I loved this blog post.

Interesting information on Alzheimers and reading connections

Electric Literature has great articles about literature. I just found this site so I haven't seen much of it yet, just throwing it out there. I loved this article though. 

Want more on what Mark Cuban and Warren Buffet think about reading? Check this article out.