The Joy of Reading

Reading is easy for me, generally. I had a good education, particularly in Catholic grammar school in the 50s and 60s (1954-1964).The Sisters of Mercy (not all were), were hard on reading, writing and arithmetic (and catechism). And I'm so fortunate they were. Perhaps that's why I still remember and still rattle off 40 prepositions that I memorized in third or fourth grade (there's 70 now - things change). Also in those early grades, the nuns taught English using two main methods: the Latin roots of words, and phonetics.

Latin roots. Easy to learn 'cause I knew no different. Prefixes and suffixes became very easy to recognize and separate from their roots, for example, in-doctrin(e)-ation. In later years, I learned Christ's prayer, the Our Father, in Latin (and can spout half of it now), and recited it in 1964 at the baptism ceremony of my converted Boy Scout troop leader. He had chosen me as his Godfather. We quickly lost touch.

Then there's phonetics, a boon to my learning and reading abilities. It was discarded by the 70s, but to me, it was a fantastic way to learn, especially how to read aloud and guess right most of the time. I firmly believe phonetics should still be taught, especially in those early grades. My wife Janet has taught English as a Foreign Language to immigrants attending Mercer County College and elsewhere, and swears by roots of words and phonetics in those environments. Between grasping both of them myself, and not being stymied by big words, my vocabulary isn't half-bad (hah!).

Maybe that's why Janet and I like the movies like Spellbound and Akeelah and the Bee. However, I am not nearly as good as those young students, nor am I a motivational speaker either. I do help Janet often with her spelling needs tho. And being in Sacred Heart Catholic School, memorizing words and their spellings became second nature. I was in our school spelling bee, in front of an audience, on stage, and was defeated by my misspelling "mischievous," which would be a perfect description of me in my youth.

Altho Mom has told me I didn't speak much until age six, I've always liked to read. Circa 1963 (or earlier?), Mom bought a complete set of Encyclopedia Brittanica's (now online only I think). The main set consisted of thirty or so 4-inch tomes, mostly composed of topical essays. I certainly looked thru them. But I was attracted to the Brittanica Juniors, fourteen red-covered smaller books, only two inches wide each. Over a period of a few months I read every word of all fourteen books when I wasn't in school or playing outside or getting into trouble. That, shooting pool, and building model cars were my pastimes during that period, TV-watching not so much. I don't remember any specifics I read, but somehow reading them helped my comprehension and language skills (and probably intelligence too). They still sit in Mom's den, barely touched and horribly outdated (but not all by any means).

As an aside, I've had two IQ tests: the first c. 1983 and the latter c. 1994. Both given by my bosses. The first when I begged Charlie Burrows at the Bureau of Data Processing to see if I was computer programmer material. After all, my title was DP Programmer II, even tho I didn't write one line of COBOL for work. I took that first test and achieved 132. In 1994, our Treasury Admin Director, Chuck Chianese, had all his managers take one (very similar test I might add). I achieved 131. But when seeing results, I questioned the grading on a couple, and so one answer was deemed correct, giving me 132 again. Who knows what it would be now. Janet and I almost match exactly.

So I've never shied away from reading. Its criminal that girls and women (and boys too, but less so, often 'cause they (and girls), must work at a young age), are denied education under some misguided regimes or philosophies. Criminal. Education - reading, writing etc. is to important to human development and potential to be neglected, let alone banned. "Regard man as a mine rich in gems of inestimable value. Education can, alone, cause it to reveal its treasures, and enable mankind to benefit therefrom.”
— Bahá’u’lláh

And I do like to read and study Baha'i, religious and spiritual writings almost every day, at least a little something. I've "read" the highlights of the Old and New Testaments all my life, and the Quran twice, but have much further study ahead of me. I am a third done another book I'm writing called Islam for Westerners, because I feel so strongly that the western mind and heart has paid little attention to the tenets of Islam (except for a bad TV show set in L.A., and a half-decent one made in Canada), and the life and teachings of the Apostle and Prophet Muhammad, whom Baha'is also believe is a divine Manifestation and Messenger of God. Can 1.3 Billion Muslims all be wrong? Get serious! How many believers does it take to convince you there's truth there? And to set the record straight, true Islam has always been, and is today, a Faith that has only defended itself.  And like all faiths, it has that right. Today it must be in words and discourse, not force and violence.

Sorry, back to reading. I got on my high horse for a minute. I've stated elsewhere I rarely read newspapers for news. NPR and News 4 every night are my basic sources. But I had to read (and write), every day during my last 35 year's with the State, mostly technical and business reading and writing. On the literary side, ever since being a kid and reading Asimov's I, Robot, Ray Bradbury's Farenheit 451, and similar sci-fi stories, its been my primary reading interest (and watching movies). (Oh, and no book burning, especially not the Word of God as in the Quran.) I also read eight books of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time until I just couldn't take the protagonist Rand al'Thor's ineptness. Science fiction, and sci-fi fantasy whether Le Guin, Ellison, Heinlein and many others, especially now with George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire novels (I'm reading Clash of Kings now), I've also liked. Terry Goodkind was my favorite for his epic series. And since 1960 or so, since I saw a rerun of the original 1951 The Day the Earth Stood, sci fi movies don't go unwatched.

Movies also teach language, and that's the only reason I mention these other interests as well. (Of course, Sesame Street's a good example also.) But reading and education has to be our biggest priority as a nation (along with providing universal healthcare -- but not free, per se; ending poverty, corruption etc.).

I earn a lot of cheap books from our Hamilton Twp. Free Public Library where I work Mondays, the most recent being Plato in 90 Minutes, a fun read. I also love reading magazines. I skim the ads, pictures and titles, but like to peruse Time, AARP Magazine, Parade Magazine, Consumer Reports, and especially The Week. My son Jesse bought me a subscription years ago for my birthday, and we've been enjoying its dual viewpoints (in some cases), since. And online reading? I can't list all my digital magazine and report subscriptions, over 100, centered on energy, information technology and writing/publishing. 

In fact, my next "Joy of" blog will be on writing, then math, and finally this mini-series will be capped by one on Education. 


By Rodney Richards, NJ