Reading Builds Patience
Slight impatience is something that I certainly come by honestly. I’ve never once enjoyed TV commercials….I know you’re thinking “who does?” But really, the invention of the DVR felt like a heavenly gift that I was graced with. I’d always have another activity lined up to do in the commercial break, all the while keeping myself on the edge of my seat, wondering what will happen next when the commercials finally conclude.
The one patient activity that I did always enjoy, however, is reading. Life seems to move so slowly when you’re reading a novel. You could watch what happens in 30 pages of a book in a minute of a movie, but it can’t hit you as hard. You don’t think about how the light wind is ruffling the young boy’s scarf as he rides the train. When you’re watching a movie, details like that fly by. You’re still impacted but in a much different way. It’s all up to preference of entertainment, obviously.
The first book in my favorites collection was “The Night Before Christmas.” I had it all memorized before I even knew how to read myself. Then it continued when I started reading big books very young. My first grade teacher challenged me in the first few weeks with “Anne of Green Gables,” which I recall staying up every night reading and looking up the meanings of words I didn’t know, until (I think) my mother made me go to bed…. though it’s probably more likely that my dad was the one who made me go to bed because he was tired of being asked to define words.
What’s so great about reading to me is that the reader becomes the filmmaker. I can picture my own story. My vision of it will never look exactly the same as what someone else is picturing when reading the same book. That simple fact is magic to me and why reading still proves to be one of my favorite forms of entertainment.
The world moves so fast around us now. If you’re ever feeling lost, impatient, or taken away by it at all, try picking up a book at a bookstore near you that seems interesting. Don’t judge yourself for the book you pick; choose one that piques your interest. Then, find a quiet spot outside amongst the trees, turn your phone off, and just read.
Reading is one thing but being surrounded by nature, which is always moving and growing at its own pace - never in a rush - makes the entire experience even more healing.
If you need a book recommendation, see below:
They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera
This is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp
ANYTHING on Oprah’s Book Club List
I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
(Haven’t read this yet but heard it’s GREAT)
The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Animal Farm by George Orwell (If this wasn’t required for you to read in school, you should read it… just because it’s a classic, haha)
The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron
These are all random genres to throw out something that may suit everyone, but I like anything! So if there’s a book you LOVE, please let me know!
P.S. If you need self-care book recommendations or suggested plays or acting books, I have an insane amount of all of those…. so reach out to me!