I hear all the time that people are reading less and less these days. Perhaps there are more distractions, more gadgets, our lives are too busy to find a quiet corner and savour a book. Yet, this is a habit that we need to keep alive in ourselves and inculcate in future generations. Reading is to the mind what a good meal is to the body. It sustains, it nourishes, it helps us think, it helps us grow. I have for years spoken about a few simple things we can do in our homes and around us to keep this habit alive. I hope you will agree with my suggestions and try to implement some of them.
• Build home libraries. Gather books in one and twos and slowly build up a collection. Keep this library as a gift for future generations, filling it with beautiful meaningful books.
Read with your children. If you are a parent, keep aside some part of the day when you sit with your children and read together. It could be the same book that you read together, or each can have his/her own book that you read in companionable silence.
. If you are a teacher, or part of a school, bring interesting, age-appropriate books into the class- room and read them together with the children. Begin discussions around them that will make them think and love the act of reading.
Visit bookstores and libraries when you go to any new place. Sometimes you may find more infor- mation hidden away there than you expected.
