Books

A Series on

My Passions-Part 1

Books are the Best, don’t you agree?

To say that I am passionate about books is an understatement.  I love reading, but more than that, I just adore old-fashioned, hard copy, paper bound books.  Books are fascinating.

I have a picture of myself as a baby, tearing down the books from my parent’s bookcase.  I am surrounded by a pile of history books, my dad loves history and geography, and I have the widest grin of satisfaction.  It was a smile to rival that of the Cheshire cat in Alice in Wonderland.

Books have been my constant companions; the worlds they contain have been my refuge.

As a parent, they have guided me.  More than that though, books have inspired me to challenge my children.  The greatest literature provides me with inspiration when I just don’t know what to do to keep my kids busy. I can always figure it out, whatever ‘it’ is, by scrolling through the rolladex of literature in my mind.

Boy, talk about old-school. Does anyone even know what a rolladex is anymore? Give me a shout out if you do!

But I digress….

Surrounding myself with the books that I love has anchored me in a way I find hard to describe.  I can sum up this relationship by saying that I find solace in the fact that no matter what else is going on, John Keat’s “Ode to a Nightingale” has not, and will not, change.

What do I love about books, specifically?  well….everything, but let’s break this down.

The Five Senses and Books

1) Sight:

The Aesthetic Beauty of Books

Firstly, let’s start from an aesthetic point of view.

Books make a room look great.  They add interest to shelves and they start conversations.  Those conversations bring people together, and that, my friends,  is why you always want to have books in every room.   Without them, no one will ever talk to you!

Jokes aside, even the most m inimalistof designers will use books to decorate.  They symbolize knowledge, and that always looks good.

Personally, even when the words contained within the covers of a book leave me disappointed, that very same book sitting on a shelf still holds the promise of something.  I’ve also been guilty of buying books just for their looks.

Seeing books in a room lifts me up.

Lately, I’ve noticed that people organize their books on their bookshelves by color.  While I prefer keeping them in groups based on genre, I saw that Rachel Hollis did just that in her office.  Just in case you’ve been living under a rock,  Rachel is an inspiration in so many ways, so check her out if you can. Her bookcase was a backdrop to her Instagram Live discussion a few days ago, it looked wonderful.  I just might give this a try!  Let me know if you do too.

2)  Eau de Livre

Next, let me just get this out of the way.  Books smell awesome…that makes me sound weird, but I’ll take it.  Anybody else with me?  I think paper has the best smell.

I won’t wax poetic about this, but I know that you can’t beat the smell of walking into a bookstore!  Musty library smell I could do without, but I know some book people that love that too.

3) The Sound of a Good Book

Also, books make the best sound when you put them down on  a tabletop.  It’s the thud of self-confidence.  The sound of someone’s thoughts and the weight of hard work and all its promises rolled into one.

4) Touch – Give your book a hug

Nothing is better than running your fingers through the pages of a new book before you read it.  It’s great not knowing what’s going to happen, but knowing that its all right there about to be discovered. I once fantasized about learning brail, just so I could read with my fingers.

5) Tasty Pages

Finally, I’ve never eaten a book, although at the rate my toddler is going through them, you’d think they were a gourmet treat.  I can say that cookbooks are one of my favorite types of books to own.  They contain so much promise, and that in itself is worth the price.

I can look at my copy of Jamie Oliver’s The Naked Chef and feel inspired to cook up something grand for my family.  Even if I don’t get around to making anything from the recipes, just the idea that I could makes me feel inspired to plan my meals better, stock my fridge and be an all around better cook.  The promise of my more competent self is right there hidden in the pages of my cookbooks.

A Vision Board for the Season

Fall into a good book

I could go on and on, but this post is long enough as it is.  I’ll  end by saying that this time of year is synonymous  with books and stationery.  For me, the fall season is all about sprucing up my TBR list  (to be read list) and re-ordering my bookshelves to reflect my desires for the fall and winter ahead.

I use my books as a sort of vision-board.

Once I’ve gotten my book piles in order-on my nightstand, in the living room, in the craft/playroom, then I’m set. I feel like I’ve set an intention for my life, for my mind and my heart.

The books I’m currently into, or want to get into, are a refleion of who I  am right now and who I want to be a few months from now.  I dust off my shelves and simultaneously reset my goals going into a new school year.

When do you clean out your book piles? Re-order your bookshelves?

How much are your books a reflection of your current state of mind?

Let me know in the comments below.  I’d ❤️ to hear.