Beguiling Bibliophile

I am a self professed bibliophile, which is a fancy way to say that I love to read. I can’t remember a time when I didn’t know how. My childhood was marked by adventures to various bookstores (new and used) on a fairly regular basis. It is also something I look for as soon as I move to a new city, I have to scope out the used bookstores in the area.

One of the most memorable used bookstores I would frequent growing up was called the “Book House.” It was set back off the road so you had to drive in between an auto shop and another storefront to get to it. The first time I ever went my dad was driving and kept asking “do you see it yet?” I didn’t see the sign till we were driving under it. The shop itself was an old house that from the outside looked like it had seen better days, but inside it was filled with books from floor to ceiling. Each room was designated to specific genres marked by little hand written signs above the door. You could get lost inside wandering up and down the aisles, lose track of time, and even imagine you were in a completely different world.

Sadly bookstores, especially used bookstores, are becoming harder and harder to find. The Book House was forced to move to a smaller store front across the city. I freely admit that amazon makes it extremely easy and convenient to find the book you are looking for without having to go to five different stores, but I do miss those weekends I would spend driving around the city visiting all of the shops I knew.

Books themselves are important to me because they hold knowledge. Knowledge based in fact or used in as an example of a creative mind. They are important because they are the amalgamation of words. In my opinion, it is an art form to be able to put words together in a way that influences a readers thoughts, informs them of the world around them, or entertains them for the time it takes to read them. Words are power. They have the power to bring love or hate. To bring war or to unite. To spark ideas in otherwise bored minds. They are what we use everyday to communicate and it is important that we remember the power they hold. We have the power over our words and how we use them whether it is through writing a book, blog, post on social media, or communicating in our daily lives.

“Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.” -Mother Teresa

The words we choose to string together bring connotation and meaning that influence the intended target to almost as much as the words themselves. So we need to choose our words wisely and use them to bring about positive change, positive impact, and positive ideas. Learn new words to intersperse in your daily conversation to increase your impact. People will pay attention because they will want to know what your words mean and what you are trying to say with them. Words and ideas form the basis for everything we do, it is up to us to use them for good. We must push ourselves to expand our vocabulary so that we can continue to communicate our ideas and feelings towards others. I can only hope that we do this in a way that brings positive change to the world around us.

“You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” Mahatma Gandhi