Along this 52 week journey, I occasionally catch myself asking the question, "Why do we read?" or "What is the value in reading (this many books)?"
The answer to these, and so many other questions, have come to me this week and in the reading of "No Cure For Being Human." Without getting too far into what's happening in my personal life, I will just say that this book has brought me so much peace and assurance. The journey that Kate takes as she works through some potentially devastating medical news, illuminates for me what our family is facing in the days, weeks, and months ahead. I could go into the countless quotes I have bookmarked or the endless personal reflections or the hours of deep contemplation this book has caused, but I fear this would do a disservice to the journey and experience of others.
And it is not to say that this book is for everyone, it just happened to be the book I needed to read - exactly when I needed to read it.
Which brings me all the way back to my first questions about why we read or what is the value of reading? And for me, this is exactly it. The opportunity to see through others' eyes (empathy), to learn from their experience (wisdom) and to better understand topics that are so foreign to us in our day-to-day (knowledge). It is my humble opinion, but I believe the world would continue to be a better place if we, together, found more empathy, wisdom and knowledge. Maybe all the world needs is to read a little more... could it be that simple?
To close, I often think about the possibility of sainthood. Could there be those who walk among us who are called by a higher-order to perform miracles and make our lives better? Let me just say, the person who gifted me this book, just a couple weeks ago, has solidified my belief that saints do walk among us. I won't name her here, but I do hope she reads this and accepts my unending thanks for this miracle and for so many other miracles she has performed beforehand.
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