What might at first seem like an unusual idea is actually a rather good one - a Christmas tree made of books! Given that the classic Christmas tree signals the season of giving gifts and (hopefully) giving thanks, well, what could be more of a treasure trove than a tree literally crammed with inspirational goodies?
Yes, I mean it, truly inspirational "goodies"! Somehow today, unless "goodies" means something sickeningly sweet and fattening, or some new electronic plaything, then it's frowned upon as anything but "goodies" and just the word "book" can induce a yawn. I don't know how this happened but it no doubt has something to do with "books" and "school" being largely synonymous. Yawn. ;)
This is a problem, and one that needs addressing. Don't get me wrong; I am not saying that as a kid I would have jumped into the present pile to the books first, ahead of my beloved chemistry sets or musical gifts - of course not. I wasn't a classically bookish type. But it is also true that once some chocolate had been eaten, and some shiny new toy had been clunked around for a while, the gifts that often endured the longest were the books. They often induced the first silence observed for weeks, and parents surely appreciated (deserved!) that.
Unlike almost any other form of gift, a book can transport one off into a parallel universe, make us forget the clock and the TV and the world, and literally give us a breather, all the while performing some form of extracurricular education. I think it is good for us to switch off the chatter in our own heads, and let someone else take us by the hand and lead us down the road of their choice. It's a bit like dreaming, where we switch off and just drift off into one adventure or another, and awake refreshed afterwards.
I also don't agree that to some books can just be boring, and deserve a bored yawn when the wrapping paper comes off to reveal only a book. Why? Well, because everyone loves something! Whether it's history and world wars, or music, or art, or fashion, or cooking, or science, or technology or adventure and global travel, well, someone has written a book on it. If your kid loves sci-fi movies then for sure he/she can be persuaded to read a 400 page story of a future world where platinum-clad androids invade the earth and rule our world. If he/she loves wizards and magic, then, ehmm, I think someone has probably written a book about that too!
The key thing is to read more, irrespective of the actual content. While one might have trouble persuading kids that they also should read this amazing novel that Mom or Dad read recently and loves, why not choose a book that spoke to you when you were a kid instead? Young people can't usually be expected to enjoy books that seem brilliant to us today, due to the large divide in age, experience and outlook. So think back to something that blew your mind when you were a teenager, and throw that into the stocking and see what happens!
The key is simply to continue to give them what they want, but just make sure to throw two or three books in each year, and see if a spark appears. If it does, fan the flames and let it spread into a full-blown forest fire. Every book can be an adventure that lasts for weeks (or longer) and that alone makes them some of the best value for money out there.
There's nothing quite like that feeling when you are in the middle of a great book and you actually can't wait to get home and get stuck into it again. Further, there's also a very unique feeling when a book you want to go on forever suddenly comes down to the last several pages, and you find yourself spreading them out and dragging them out because you don't want it to end. That's a sure sign that the writer did his job!
Now of course, there's an irony to the "tree" above being made of books, not least because it is the tree that created the physical part of the book, but moreover due to the fact that books are becoming more and more of a virtual thing. I am not going to get into the pros and cons of that situation as it is more appropriate for another blog on that subject alone, but it is relevant to this post in another way.
So yes, we are living in a truly digital age and that may apparently make it even more of a challenge to get kids excited about the sight of a book, but guess what? If they are typical kids then they all have electronic devices that can double as e-readers, if they don't actually own a Kindle or similar item already. So in that case, it doesn't have to be a hard copy of a book under the tree, it can be an online in-store credit that allows them to download three books of their choice directly onto their device.
It's all books, it's all reading, and that can only be a good thing. To be virtually off into some new world inside your own head to the exclusion of this world, while almost always simultaneously receiving some subliminal form of further education (even if it's just in terms of expression in written form) is such a rewarding gift.
So give a book to someone for Christmas this year, and hand them a whole new world to dive into where they can forget about this world for a while. It's fantastically therapeutic and one comes out the other end enriched, and ready to start on a whole new adventure, once more. Hmm, speaking of therapy, I think it's definitely time for some San Francisco ultimate dark roast blended with dark chocolate milk! ;) - Kevin Mc
No comments:
Post a Comment