I am all for technology. I could not live without my laptop, survive without the internet or sustain my family without Amazon.com. Well, maybe that is a tad exaggerated but it would be so difficult. I have completed my bachelor of science through online university classes, I have shared my last two pregnancies and made some great mom friends through online groups for moms expecting the same month. I have had a wealth of information from researching the best baby swing to the best cheesecake recipe at my fingertips. I have been able to search for more details on an interesting real life mystery I have seen on TV. I can find out how old anyone is even when they don’t want to tell. I can connect with old friends and relatives who I would never be able to find without hiring a private investigator.
We are a very technologically current family. We all have the latest Droid phones and our internet with us at all times. So given all this, you think I would long have an Amazon Kindle or its competitors. However, while I do have the Kindle app on my Droid I do not own the device. I just still love to feel a book in my hands, turning the actual paper pages, and having something more tangible to hold rather than a flat screen reader. I do read a lot on the internet. Most of my text books were e books, I read my newspapers online, magazines online but there is still the occasional magazine I enjoy reading in print. I read a real Bible and my novels, books and definitely all the kids books are real paper and ink creations. I am a big advocate of sharing my love of reading with my kids. I have their shelves stacked with old classics and new favorites.
I remember when my son Raymond wrote a story when he was in fourth grade about how his sister had brought down a plane with the weight of her books. Then they landed on younger brother Michael’s leg and broke it. Alexandra never went anywhere without a book and was an avid reader, and so inspired her brother to write this story which was read aloud at a special classroom function. His teacher who taught Alexandra and himself just loved the story especially since she could clearly see how he was inspired.
So I would guess at some point I will break down and get a kindle but it is something right now that I cannot do it. I really have no desire to read books on a hand-held reader. So, I will hold off for now, not from technology but from giving up the feel of a good book in my hand, the smell of the ink and paper, the thrill of turning the page and falling asleep reading a book you cannot put down. Some things are just harder to part with than others. For now I choose books.
