I Miss Silent Reading...

Imagine it. You go to work, dressed in your best, coziest pajamas. You bring your best pillow and a fluffy blanket. And instead of sitting at your desk and working, you get to curl up on the floor (or chair, or couch, or wherever you are comfortable) and pull out your favorite book.

Wouldn't that be an amazing day?

Read Across America is this week and all I can think of it what an amazing gift that was! I looked forward to it every year in school. I've always been a reader. Giving me a chance to read for an entire day was a dream come true.

Though honestly, I didn't need to be told to read. One of my favorite memories was from high school. I wasn't much of a student back then. My grades were high enough to keep my parents happy and let me stay active in after-school activities. Besides choir, my class of choice was history. I'm not really a history buff, but I loved this teacher.

Why? He started a class discussion about religion by saying a prayer to the Roman god of war. He allowed a day for a Mormon student to share her culture and to have a friendly discourse about it (My hometown was not open-minded or diverse in any sense of the word). So I loved him. That leads to my favorite story.

I decided to read my first Stephen King novel, Salem's Lot. As soon as I finished my work in class, I read. When I went to the next class, I put it aside until I could read again. I was so engrossed that I walked through the halls, barely aware of people passing me by. When I got to history, I continued to read, waiting for the teacher to start.

At some point, my teacher walked over and pushed the top of my book up slightly so he could see the cover. It was then that I realized everyone was leaving the classroom. I had read through the class and I had been caught.

I was horrified. I had no idea what kind of trouble I was going to be in (I wasn't a trouble-maker in school. I was the timid kid who never raised their hand and tried not to make eye contact). And then my teacher surprised me.

Instead of punishing me, he looked up and said, "Like it?" I nodded, too afraid to say anything else. He smiled and said, "You should try Dead Zone."

And that was why he was my favorite teacher.

So, I propose that we all take a day, (call in sick if you need to. Yes, I advocate using sick days for mental health and what is more healing than reading?), get in our comfy jammies, and read a good book.

Why should Read Across America just be for kids? We should be good role models after all :P

So go grab a paperback, hardback, ebook, or an audio book (it’s all reading to me!) and keep exploring my friends!

Chris Bannor

Fictional World Explorer