Once upon a time there was a little red-head who loved to read.
She would lie on her pink chiffon bedspread and go through book after book.
Her fondest dream was to own a private library with thousands of books.
A place where she could read all day and her mother would bring her grilled cheese sandwiches on a silver platter for lunch.
Of course, this little girl would not have been me.
I hated reading when I was a child.
During elementary school I was placed in a remedial reading class.
Even though the teachers were very supportive, I soon realized that I wasn't able to read like most of my class-mates.
My mother worked with me at home for hours to try and help.
Finally in the sixth grade, after my yearly reading/comprehension testing, I was told that my problems did not relate to understanding words, I just read slowly.
Reading out loud was hard for me also and I struggled when everyone had to read aloud in class.
It seemed that I had marbles in my mouth compared to my class-mates.
My reading situation did not change as I became a teenager.
Discouragement and frustration were commonplace.
When there was reading homework for a class, often I just couldn't finish before it was due.
None of my friends had this problem; they were all honor students and could finish their assignments and have time to read a good book of their own choosing.
Not fair! I loved to learn and I wasn't stupid so why was this so hard for me! My mother told me something when I was in high school that changed my perspective.
She told me I read like my father.
Now my dad was (and still is) one of the smartest people I knew.
He could solve problems in his head that most people need a computer for.
And I read like him? She reminded me of the people that she had met that couldn't read at all and how limiting this could be for them.
My focus began changing.
I was like my dad who was an amazing person to me.
I had been blessed with great parents who helped me, the chance to go to school and gain an education and even an abundance of books to read any time I wanted.
My eyes were open to new possibilities.
As I compared my life to those like me and others who did not have my blessings, I felt a desire to be worthy of all I had been given.
From that time on, I have worked harder on improving my gift of reading.
When asked about my hobbies reading is now on my list.
I read all the time.
I have read aloud to my children from the time they were babies and don't sound as though I have marbles in my mouth.
I still read slower then most.
My son and I have a running joke about it.
He will get a book and finish reading it in a day and then give it to me so I can read it for about a week.
I tell him I get to enjoy it longer.
This new attitude does not eliminate my challenges, it gives me courage to overcome as much as I can and gain strength by doing so.
With this new outlook and love of reading, I'm much closer to living happily ever after.
previous post