Passing on the Joy of Reading

"Mom will you read me a grown up book?" Sydney asked tonight holding out a pink bound book. We'd been running around all day long & I'd had a "crazy children kind of day" and wanted everyone IN BED as soon as possible, but looking at her holding up one of my very favorite childhood books (a condensed for young readers version) & I couldn't say no.

The first time I read Anne Of Green Gables was my first summer away from my parents. My cousin Katie & I spent a few weeks with my Nana in the small town of Monticello, Utah. There was a tiny library in the middle of town that we could walk to & pick up a pile of books.

After we'd gone to the local craft store, walked around the cemetery, & picked raspberries out of Nana's yard there wasn't much left to do but read. And these books... oh my... I devoured every single page. Then decided that I was meant to marry Gilbert, was determined to visit this lovely mystical place called Canada someday, & I found a kindred spirit in Anne when she said, "People laugh at me because I use big words. But if you have big ideas you have to use big words to express them."

So, though I was exhausted I sat with Syd, Linc perched on my lap, & cracked it open. I thought maybe Syd was too young to really enjoy or understand the story but we blew through the first chapter & Syd nestled the book mark at the beginning of Chapter 2 smiling to herself. Under her breath she whispered, "I can't wait to read more tomorrow."

And I smiled back saying, "Yup, I know exactly how you feel."