I remember my mother recently saying “I haven’t read a book since 1984”. That was the year my oldest sister was born. It’s so relatable. I didn’t read a lot until I became an adult. Being highly sensitive and very insecure, even at a young age, I was very discouraged when it came to academics. I remember pretending to read the back of a cereal box one morning, because I wanted to so bad, and my sisters teased and poked fun at me to the point where I shied away from it altogether. We listened to a podcast recently talking about the numbers of book readers have dropped significantly. People aren’t interested or think they don’t have the time. I now usually think I don’t have the time, because my reading habits would have to change. Long gone are the days that I could sit down, uninterrupted and read for hours on end. 

It wasn’t until my mid twenties that I really picked up reading again. And I couldn’t stop. Especially Stephen King. My dad always had a huge SK collection but I was never allowed to read it. So when I got into reading it was my number one go to- and still is! Several years ago I had a nosey-know-it-all who disrupted my coffee shop reading telling me what an overrated bore SK was because his books were too long. I ended up later seeing an interview with him saying that so many people think about his books. I loved what he said – it was something along the lines of reading is a luxury. 

In the past 4 years, I have really come to understand my mother and Stephen King. Sure I’m not reading over 20 books a year like I was before having kids, and I’m not reading nearly as much as my husband, who can read 3 books at a time and finish them all within a month – but I am reading, slowly and enjoyably. I’m not talking about the endless amount of short children’s books we read everyday (the good ones and the….not so good ones) Every other night I’m reading one chapter of The Chronicles of Narnia to my girls as they drift off to sleep (we are on The Horse and His Boy). Bob and I have been working through reading Doctor Sleep together (it has taken well over a year to read a book aloud together but it’s worth it in fun and it’s romantic to read together) and here and there I find other things to entertain myself. Yesterday Bobby drew me a bath by heating up enough bath water on the stove (that’s a big commitment) and I was able to use my herbal products, relax with incense and a kerosene light while reading a book he got my months ago, Braiding Sweetgrass.

And you know what, Stephen King was right. Reading is a luxury. Find time to do it. Especially if you have children. You’ll be happier!