My son brought up an interesting point today. He expressed a dismay about the closing of Borders bookstores. When the first Borders bookstore opened in San Francisco, I also felt dismayed, but my dismay was based on the fear that Borders would eat up all the independent bookstores San Francisco is famous for. City Lights, DogEar Books, Modern Times all great bookstores, and I feared for their longevity.
My fear was unfounded because as we speak all those bookstores are still in existence and Borders is closing. Another thing my son is worried about is the Kindle, he believes that the Kindle will somehow kill books as we know them. Books as I know them can never die, they live in my memory and they live in me.
A book is an old friend I can visit again and again. A book helps me recapture my youth and takes me away from the humdrum of this existence. Where else but in a book can I be transported from a crowded muni bus to the Hogwarts train.
In a book I see the effort I put into it, I read only two pages that is how far my bookmark goes, if I am really, really into a book I can read half of it in one sitting. I keep a book in every room in my house. My bedroom book is usually a mystery novel. The bathroom book is usually some short and happy one. The one I read while everyone watches TV is usually a self help book. Lately, I have been engrossed in books about meditation and gratitude which is why I am doing this blog. I needed a forum to express my gratitude about the little things in my life that I really appreciate and hopefully others appreciate them too, and if not maybe help someone see that life is full of gifts and we just have to stop and say wow, I never thought of that, but that truly is a blessing.
So is the closing of Borders a gift? I say yes, because it made me realize that one, my son loves books and two it motivated me to write about my love of books. Both things I would not have realized had the topic of conversation been about the closing of Borders Bookstores.
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