Yesterday I spent the entire day doing something I haven’t done in a few years that I used to do almost every single weekend as a kid. I read. From 7am until about 11pm, almost 16 hours, I escaped in a way that only a book allows.
I love that when you really let yourself get into a book, you can almost become someone else for a while. I know that one of the reasons I am so empathetic towards others is that I read a lot in my formative years. When you allow yourself to fall into someone else’s shoes for as long as it takes to complete a novel, you’re working out the empathetic parts of your brain. Reading is a wonderful pastime that increases empathy towards others.
I’m going to get a little John Lennon “Imagine” on you right here, but imagine if everyone worked on their empathy a bit more.
This thought led me on a search for a way to help encourage reading in children, which led to a great charity called First Book. For every $5 donated, First Book provides two new books to children in need.
If you have a few dollars to spare, consider giving to this amazing charity with a great cause. $5 has the potential to change the lives of two children. They’ve got 4/4 stars on Charity Navigator which means they spend their money wisely and are accountable and transparent in how they spend that money.
Donate to First Book
Encourage reading for empathy!
I’ve set up a Virtual Book Drive to collect donations that will allow First Book to distribute 80 books to children in need.
Join me in idealistic awesomeness and encourage reading in children!
Give up one latte to give the gift of reading.
And on a more personal level, since I only read 2 books last year and one line of my 2014 New Year’s Resolution had been to read more, I feel that I have a lot to make up for in 2015.
I’ve set up a modest challenge for myself for 2015 to read at least 5 books. If you’re on GoodReads, be my friend and we’ll force each other to read! (Okay, maybe not force…)
