Why read. . .

Have you read The Wretched Stone by Chris Van Allsburg? I won't give the story away, but the theme is that reading is good for humans.

And from my own experience, I can say I disagree. One of the problems with reading is that it opens up worlds. While that sounds exciting, it means choices scurry into your head. Ideas, potentials, thoughts perform covert ops on the conscious and sub-conscious. This mucks life up with possibilities.

If not careful the unsuspecting person may end up getting ideas. Life can take on subtle unfamiliar colors.

My life was ruined. This reading stuff lured me to entertain notions of art. Songwriting gradually consumed large portions of my time as readings of T.S. Eliot, and dozens of others' work deepened my imagination.

Now after a four year lay off from reading, with cataracts becoming a fading memory, once more the draw of books settles in on me. Sadly, it's resurrected songwriting. It's sparked the creative impulse.

So be careful of this dangerous thing called innocuously by "readers" simply "books." The description is short, but the impact can be devastating.