In Jacqueline Woodson’s Ted Talk, “What Reading Slowly Taught Me About Writing,” she discusses various reasons why reading is so important in her life and in history. A reason that stuck out to me was when she mentioned her ancestors who were faced with danger at the prospect of literacy. It was interesting to hear her discuss how, despite the fear her ancestors and fellow slaves must have felt, they still continued to seek uncover the meanings of the words and stories hidden within the pages of books. She speculated that stories were a way for slaves to come together amidst their struggles, as well as to give their children little bits of hope, and to keep their dreams strong. This reason is important to me because it exemplifies how we should not take reading for granted. We live in a time where books of all types and sizes are easily accessible, and yet, most of us choose to push books to the side in favor of our favorite streaming services or social medias. Reading can take us into various worlds where we can learn so much about ourselves, others, and society, or reading can simply take us out of harsh realities and spark a fulfilling joy.
This resonates with me because of the struggle I have with self-enrichment. Before quarantine, I was off of social media and reading a plethora of books for the first time since I was a child, and I had never felt more satisfied with myself. But once quarantine started, I became confined to a house where I subconsciously know that at all times, I could be on my phone, computer, gaming consoles, watching TV, etcetera, rather than reading, and thus, the motivation to crack open a book is non-existent. I’ve been wanting to get back into reading for a while now, but the subconscious knowledge of all this technology I have access to makes it beyond difficult.
The “Asian Americans Are Still Caught in the Trap of the ‘Model Minority’ Stereotype. And It Creates Inequality for All” article really stood out to me when we first had to read and respond to it. However, now that I’ve watched this Ted Talk, it has reiterated to me the importance of listening to and truly digesting others’ stories. As mentioned in the Ted Talk, if we didn’t take other’s views through words, written or spoken, or drawings, into account, we wouldn’t know how the Egyptians preserved King Tut’s body, or how the very first humans made tools out of stones, or how the slaves were able to maintain their hope. It’s crucial to absorb slowly and closely to further enrich our lives and make the world a more understanding and safe place for everyone.
It’s really insane to think that we can take reading for granted when there was a time that books weren’t easily accessible. Sometimes I think of how lucky we are to live in a time where we can just pick up a book and find ourselves in worlds that we never could have dreamed of.
It’s also interesting that you say quarantine has negatively affected your motivation to read because I feel like it’s been the opposite for me. Before quarantine, I was always on the go and it was easier to just be on my phone (mostly on social media) than to open up a book and read. I carried around a book I wanted to read for a month and never read past the first chapter. Being stuck at home really allowed me to “get back to my roots” – traveling through literature.
That’s just the very thing. I noticed that when people experience something that they don’t necessarily enjoy they seek something antipodal to that thing. So the fastness of life before quarantine had me looking for every precious minute where I could get some slowness. Sit for thirty min, read a book, no music blasting in my ears, etc. But of course, once quarantine began, the monotony of it makes me seek out anything that goes zoooooooooooooooooooooom. Ultimately making it hard to open up a book again. But don’t worry I’m sure the books will open up again one day, once that fastness becomes a reality again.