My love for reading

If you've read my profile you will know that my two big loves in life is books and religion. I've been reading books ever since I can remember (and even from before I could remember). I have to thank my mom for this love I have for books and reading. She enjoy telling the story that, when I was just 3 years old, she could take a nap in the afternoons placing me next to her on the bed with a story book and find me just there an hour later looking at the pictures and making up stories for myself. Personally I can't even remember how I came to be almost obsessive about books.

My two grandmothers also reads a lot. From my grandmother on my mother's side I learned an appreciation for my Afrikaans language and also for reading stories for the shake of reading. As I was growing up I used to refuse reading anything in English. I remember reading book after book by Ena Murray, Konsalik, Daleen Matthee, CF Beyers-Boshoff and many others. From my grandmother on my father's learned to love religious books which would later grow into a desire to always do introspection and work on my spiritual life.

My dad's sister was still a teenager when I was born and I remember fondly that she used to collect children stories such as Liewe Heksie and Bollie from the Huisgenoot. She would then paste these into an A4 129pg notebook and give it to me. Looking back at this I so wish that someone had the idea of keeping that book for when I grew up.

When I was in primary school my mom took me and my sisters to become members of the local library in Springs. That was my first taste of what heaven should be like. My eldest sister were not fond of reading at all (still isn't but she's trying - no need to read as much as I do) so I end up taking out six books for two weeks instead of the three books per card rule back then. Instead of reading them in the two weeks period I used to finish them within one week and my mom had to take me to the library for new books almost every week. By the time I was almost done with high school I've read more than 15000 library books alone.

I've got bored with the junior section pretty quickly, moved to the teenage section where I decided that is boring as well and asked permission from the librarian to take out adult books. That was duly give as by then the librarian knew me by name. In school holidays my mother used to ask us what we would like to do. So where other children wanted to visit their friends I asked for library days. On these days my mom would drop me off at the library in the morning with enough pocket money to buy lunch (the mall is walkable distance from the library). I would then spend the whole day wandering through the different sections of the library reading a piece here and there and making notes in a notebook.

By then I've discovered religions and philosophy and I would sit hours next to the shelves containing these books. My dad, never fond of reading himself but always encouraging me to read, became a pastor by this time. I end up encouraging him to read library books - I remember arguing that the reason why he struggle to read his own books were because he owned them and thus were able to procrastinate; thus taking out library books he would be compelled to read them as he had to take them back after a period of time. My dad, as a pastor, did get worried that I was reading too much, especially when I started reading many religious books. He came up with the plan that I should read at least as much Bible as I would any other book. I end up reading the Bible more that seven times (many more times by now - I lost counting) and took part in Bible competitions at school and church.

Knowledge of the Bible encouraged me to also read the Holy Scriptures of other religions and today I am the proud owner of the Scriptures of various religions. These I don't read for the shake of learning but with devotion in order to learn more about God and the virtuous life. Other than these I've got many favourites - Paulo Coelho, George RR Martin, Kevin J Anderson, Karen Armstrong, Deepak Chopra, Eleanor Baker, M Scott Peck, Douglas Adams, Pieter Aspe, Rick Riordian and many others.

Working today as an assistant librarian in the Brooklyn Library in Pretoria I wonder how it is that I've worked in the security business for almost eight years and not thinking of applying for a job in a bookshop or library much earlier. When I moved to Pretoria one of the first things I did was getting a membership card for the Tshwane libraries. I also visited the National Library in Pretoria CBD. For a short while I worked for Protea Books which are still one of my favourite bookshops ever since my student years. When I was a student, studying Theology and Religious Science, I would easily buy R3000 worth of books and not all just for the studies. But I was looking for a more full time job and, as one of the few people I know who actually do a job they enjoy, I was lucky enough to get the job as library assistant.

I have to laugh when I read through what I just wrote. It sure sounds like a lot of bragging. But I assure you it is excitement and encouragement. I always tell people that they do not have to read as much as I do - three to four books at the same time (how do you keep track? is a common question). All they need to do is find out what it is they are passionate about and read one book at a time in that topic. If you feel your children should read more and spend less time on their phones then my advice is that you should put down your own phone and pick up a book. There are also not many guys I know who love reading (meeting more now that I work in a library but sadly not many young men). This is due to the old misconception that reading is a 'girl activity'. Far from the truth, there is a book for everyone.

This post serves as an introduction. My blog focusing on reading and books, The Library Cat and the Bookworm, will talk about various things book related. Expect book reviews and library stories and encouragement to read. I hope you will learn to at least enjoy reading as much as I do. I promise that there are wonders you've never knew about. Whether you read to learn or as an escape or just plain for the shake of smelling a book - this is a life of enrichment that you can only dream about without books.