5/365 - Reading and luggage
14th of August 2009
A few days to go and I was putting my luggage together.
“Will I be there when winter comes? How cold does it get at night? Will I need bed sheets? Is there a risk of getting robbed? It is a hostel after all…”
Probably a lot of stuff that do not represent me anymore ended in that suitcase, like office shirts, jewellery and dresses. Apparently, I also took 5 books, I have no recollection, but this is what I mentioned in an email. I bet they were fiction books, all of them!
To this day my target is still one book per week and I am normally reading a few books at the time. I think a lot of people do this - just rely on the mood to do the picking.
A brain workout everyday is as important
I loved reading during my teenage years, it was not unusual to stay up late fascinated by a novel, nonetheless I was being called stupid, uneducated, useless and many other things that I will make sure not to even remotely pass on to my children.
My passion for books was sparked by a woman. An incredible touching, soul! I must have been about 7 or 8 years old and she lived in the building next to ours. She was a librarian at the Local Children’s Library, Mrs Mariana. I always used to say hi to her and she knew me, because she could see me playing under her balcony for as long as the sun was up. One day she came close to me, touched my chin gently and said: “Eliza, I see something special in you!”. And with that sentence she changed everything.
Those were the days when children were allowed to be on their own from an early age with the house key on a string around their necks. One day I just showed up at the library where she worked, I became a member and I was hooked! She would organise recitals and plays and she would always give me a role, I remember one time I was Cinderella. Do not get me started on Cinderella, ok?
A few months ago during one of my visits home I wanted to find out whatever happened to her and asked one of my former neighbours if they knew her, not only she knew her very well, but also confirmed that she had passed away recently at a very old age. That’s all I needed to know.
Books are barbells for the brain!
You got this!
