Kayla's Blog

 Reading and Curiosity; Intertwined

My very first memory of reading consisted of a habit, a routine that occurred every night before my bedtime. My mom, my sister and I would crowd onto my twin bed covered in a paisley-print comforter, not due to lack of space, but for a common familiarity and sense of closeness. Cozying up, we pulled out our stack of picture books from the wicker basket by my side.

Once my mother turned the cover to reveal the first page, me and my sister were entranced- eyes glued to the page, listening intently. The vibrancy of the pictures drew my attention, as the rhythm of my mother’s voice brought them to life.  I constantly reached out to turn the page before my mom finished reading, eager to see the next picture. We cycled through the same ten books of that week, whichever ones we could get our hands on at our local library,  me and my sister being lulled to sleep by the flow of words and stories. 

And the cycle repeated, night after night, week after week, year after year, until my sister and I graduated to reading chapter books on our own. 

This simple habit ingrained in me a love for storytelling- a love for entering a new world, a new perspective. Later, I found myself entranced by stories around the campfire at summer camp, even meeting new people and getting a chance to understand their perspective, their story. 

As I am writing this, I am realizing the effect reading has had on me- it has led me to approach every situation with a sense of curiosity. 

 

Flash forward to high school- boatloads of homework, practices, and social events put me under a heavy time constraint, and without thinking about it, I lost something very important to me- reading. 

However, my curiosity was not left behind- that is something that will always be a part of me. But the way I employed my curiosity in the high school setting ended up being draining, something I wasn’t familiar with. My curiosity, which I once was so glad to have, became a trait I would be better without:

Constantly asking people about themselves, in attempts to recognize who they are and form a relationship only for them to never seem interested in you- draining. Spending twice as much time on an assigned reading simply because you actually found it interesting and wanted to know more, so now you have to stay up late doing homework- draining. 

I needed a way to engage my curiosity without the utterly draining effect I was so tired of experiencing. 

The solution to this was quite simple- returning to my roots, the original habit that is intertwined with my inquisitive spirit. 

Returning to reading, however, wasn’t simple. I’m not going to go on a rant about how busy high school students are, you already know that. However, reading was something I desperately needed- and when you desperately need something, you will make the time for it. 

And that’s exactly what I did- rather than going off campus to get Starbucks during my free periods, I began to study in the courtyard. During cross country practice even, I would find myself brainstorming ideas for my projects so I could get right to work at home. 

All of these actions led to a priceless reward; an extra hour at the end of every day to myself, to practice a habit I knew was the solution to my mentally-exhausted state. I began by reading ten pages a night, at first struggling to pay attention- then gradually reading more and more, finding my favorite types of genres and books that piqued my interest. I would go to bed with these vibrant stories in my mind, feeling satisfied by the new understandings I gained. 

The more I read, the better I got at reading, and the greater benefits I experienced. Reading was the perfect solution, the perfect tool to pique my curiosity, all while allowing me to settle into a familiar bedtime routine, a way to decompress after a long day. 

I am so eternally grateful to return to this habit of mine, one that inspired my curiosity from a young age, and also became the solution when that curiosity started to be too much. 

Reading is one of the best hobbies one can have, and books, among one of the best tools. Books allow us to be curious- to wonder, to explore other perspectives, all while being transported to another world, another story- a diversion when ours get to be too much.