Off Balance

I read 10 books in November. I knew I had been reading a lot, but the number surprised me when I added them all up. Reading books is good, right? I've usually thought so and I've spent most of my life proudly identifying myself as a reader. However, a few years ago I was talking with a therapist and he asked me what hobbies I had. "I read," I responded. "What else?" he asked. I was surprised--isn't reading good? Isn't it virtuous? Aren't I better person because I read a lot? Well, as he gently pointed out, even reading can be a problem if it is being used as an escape from life or when it crowds out other more important things. Sometimes reading is best, but sometimes it's just good and there might be something better.

I realized that this was what happened last month. Many of those books were finished in the wee hours of the night when I should have been sleeping. Or during other times when I should have been doing other things. I set a goal last month to get to bed at a reasonable hour in order to get sufficient sleep, and I didn't meet that goal any night in a month. That's a problem; insufficient sleep wreaks havoc with the rest of my life. As much as I love reading, I also am realizing that I need to make room for other things like being well-rested, being patient with my kids, exercising, completing my school things on time, and so on.

So I think one of my New Year's resolutions will be to read fewer books. Weird, I know. But this will take more willpower than many other things I could do. I want to try more things and to diversify my life more. We'll see how it goes.

Comments

Jenny said…
Amen. This is my goal also.
12/23/2011 7:53 PM
rantipoler said…
Everything is moderation, I suppose. Although there are MANY vices that are way worse than excessive reading. :)
12/24/2011 9:36 AM
Dovie said…
I read blogs including yours when I need to escape. Moderation is a good thing but sometimes so is escape. ;)
12/24/2011 10:44 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Happy, Happy Blog-day Foxy Dear

Tomorrow marks the second anniversary of my blog. I had no idea where my life would go when I started this blog, and it's fun for me to read back through the archives and remember feelings and events that I have already forgotten. I think the most surprising thing about blogging that I have discovered is the sense of community. I have about fifty blogs that I follow somewhat regularly; many of them are people I haven't ever met in person. I still consider them to be my friends. I've been very grateful for all the virtual support I've received from so many people who don't really even "know" me. Miss Nemesis recently celebrated her blog's special day by asking lurkers to come out of the woodwork and reveal who they were and how they found her blog. She got 52 comments. If you want to make my day, see if you can top her numbers. Maybe then I can change my blognym to "Queen of the Universe".
Read more

Coming Out in Public

A little over 6 years ago I was on my mission in Madrid. I was transferred to new area at the same time as another elder. I remember asking him if was really from Hawaii, since he was so tall and blonde. We ended up serving together in the same district for nearly seven and a half months and had a lot of good times together. He was actually nice to the sisters and a hard worker, without being too zealous and overbearing. I knew he was going home just a month before me and planning on being an English major when he got back to BYU. When I was transferred out of that area, we exchanged emails and addresses and promised to get back in touch some day, like I did with a lot of other missionaries. I got home in January and started trying to contact some of the people I'd been friends with back in the mission. I emailed this particular elder and found out that he had gone to the computer lab that very day in order to email me. We started emailing each other and talked on the phone a few t...
Read more