A thought for the new year.

So I’ve just had a thought about books. 

They are bloody wonderful. No, seriously, you may agree with me, you may not. But I implore you to take a moment. 

I’ve always loved to read, in fact I’ve written about that before. About how Mum took my sister and I to the local mobile library once a week to choose 5 books to read. How we had a massive bookshelf in our room full of all sorts of books; gifts, hand me downs, ones we’d chosen ourselves and probably a few that we forgot to take back to the library (or not, Mum was pretty stringent on that).

I fundamentally believe my spelling, use of words, general mental dictionary and first love of art is down to reading books as a child.

It is only recently that I’ve really delved into non-fiction books, now I am pursuing a passion and new career direction that I adore - Interior Design. I’ve begun to collect books, those that are recommended to me, useful to me or just a thing of beauty full of creative inspiration. Either way, I have enough to begin my own studio library. 

And it was contemplating this thought whilst making dinner this very evening that it struck me. I get a delicious stomach-tingling buzz of excitement when I get my hands on a new book. That is often shortly followed by dismay as I mentally try and find time to sit down and read it. And not just read it, enjoy it. Absorb it. Drink in the pages. You know the kind of reading where you take something away from the pages. 

That’s when it occurred to me, adults need S.Q.U.I.R.T. 

No, no, steady, this is a perfectly innocent suggestion. It is the idea of my Year 7 English teacher. It means ‘sustained, quiet, un-interrupted, reading, time.’ And oh my goodness isn’t that the most genius idea? It means so much more now than it did then! A whole 50 mins just to sit and read a book of your choice - total bliss. 

Reading, fiction or nonfiction is a form of escape. It enables you to dive into worlds, ideas, opinions, history and more at the turn of a page. Escape into a life of someone else's, feel their emotions, walk in their shoes even just for a moment. 

Don’t we need more of that as adults? All the post-pandemic chat has shown that we’ve all done a little life re-evaluation and changed certain things. Well shouldn’t we allow ourselves some time in the day / week / month to just sit and read.

Sit and dive into an alternate reality.

Sit and learn something totally new.

Sit and absorb an alternative perspective. 

Sit and enjoy beautiful illustration. 

Sit and think of nothing else but the words or pictures on a page. 

Would this not reinvigorate our thinking? Potentially ignite a new passion? Inspire our own work?

After all, is life not about telling stories?

To sell well is to tell a compelling story.

To market effectively is to tell a story.

To create great art is to tell a story.

To design well is to bring a story to life.

To write well, even an email, is to tell a story.

So take a moment. Find a book. Carve out a reading nook in your home, a small shelf, somewhere comfortable to sit and a good light are all you need. If you can, have it near a window and grab yourself a throw blanket and something hot to drink.

Allow yourself a little sustained, quiet, uninterrupted reading time because it’s not just children who need it.