It's been just over a week since the Super Bowl, America's holiest of holidays, ended and crowned the Philadelphia Eagles champions. Their fans are currently in a euphoric state and are very easy to spot. Right now, Eagles fans all have visual cues that make them identifiable in daily life. In fact, this applies to all sports; it's easy to see who is for what team. Hats, jerseys, shirts, tattoos, and more are draped across people, signaling to others their allegiance. Of course, this isn't limited to sports. No, and unfortunately, this type of visible behavior extends far beyond athletics and has crept into literally everything. No matter the side of the political aisle you find yourself on, those, too, have their own symbols available for display. Lawn signs, flags, and even types of cars express to others where affiliations lie. TV shows, movie franchises, soft beverages, and even eating and fitness lifestyles all follow suit. What's that old joke? How do you know if someone is a vegan...they'll tell you!
This type of "calling card," if you will, signals to others who we are and what we like. Reader, please don't think I'm speaking from some moral superiority here. People are free to support whatever they like, and it would be hypocritical to denounce someone else for doing something I do, too. I am just noticing that there are certain identities out there that are a little harder to "see." For example, readers.
Now, readers have their own merch and image, too, and there is that stereotypical reader. Close your eyes for a second, and you can almost see them. You know, the pulled-back hair with glasses complemented by a cup of coffee and social awkwardness. They also have the innate ability to crush a seven-hundred-page book in a single evening. There's also this thirty-something, pajama-wearing female reader of Romantasy-smut emerging out there, too. (Reader, my wife is one of these, so I feel like I can say it.) While I and others may post about books read or use a specific bookmark/Kindle cover, reading is largely a task done in private, within the walls of your own mind. That's what makes it beautiful and different from almost everything else. My book tastes are eclectic, and I don't really fit into the stereotypical boxes mentioned above. To be honest, other than catching me in the act of reading and maybe knowing I'm a school librarian, one might never guess. I am not alone here either. I have many students, most of whom are lapsed or struggling readers themselves, who think that being a reader is just something they can't be.
Just the other day, I had a group of students crowded around a table of books I recently laid out in my school library. As they leafed through our collection's newest editions, one of them sighed towards the sky and said, "Ugh, I wish I were a reader." As teachers often do, I caught those words from across the room and walked over, interested in this familiar statement. One I often hear.
I asked back, "Well, what is a reader?"
The student thought about it for a moment, but ultimately gave me the expected answer about being able to, as she put it, "eat" books, which is something I greatly empathize with. I, too, sometimes feel like a fraud whenever I see my wife read through four long books in the time it takes me to get through a standard 350-page novel. And, I'm a librarian for Pete's sake! But the amount of pages or number of books a person reads does not make a reader a reader. So what does?
"Can I tell you the secret of being a reader?" I then asked.
"Sure," she replied with eager eyes.
With the group's focus on me, I went on to explain that what makes a reader a reader is simply doing it.
The goal, I find, is to try and read for twenty minutes a day. If that number is too daunting, then try less at first and work your way up to it. I recommend that you start a timer on your phone and then throw it across the room. Just the mere presence of a smartphone has the ability to pull you away from any reading session. Then, read. And, it really doesn't matter what you read. Just find something you enjoy and do it until you hear that timer chime.
Once your timer does go off, stop and ask yourself this question, "Can I do another twenty minutes?" If the answer is no, stop, get up, and go about your day. You hit your number! But if it's yes, repeat this process until you do say no.
That's it! It's as simple as that: Do. The. Thing.
If you can continue doing this habit daily-ish (for about 5 out of 7 days), you, my friend, are a reader. And, don't worry if you break the habit. Tomorrow is another day to start again. It always is.
This reader is hoping that this post has met your set amount of time to read for the day. If that's true, then you already are one-fifth of the way to being a reader for the week.
Thanks for choosing me.
An enjoyable read. Some readers 'eat' books in hungry gulps, others nibble and savour. But being a reader is the same as being a writer - you just have to do it!