I need to read.

Image courtesy of NYPL Digital Gallery

I need to read.
It's a little like breathing
or eating
or drinking
my life's link to thinking.
Without it I am
much less than I am,
less of a person
and more of a yam.
Reading is writing
is learning
is growing
igniting cognition,
that's what keeps one going
trucking along on a civilized track
more upward than downward
and possibly forward,
it feels like it's forward,
most probably forward,
and forward
is generally better than back.

~ Karla Kuskin

I need to read, too.  I remember back when my children were younger.  At one point, I had a 3-year-old and an infant... and absolutely no time to read anything other than bedtime stories for my kiddos.  I used to dream about having time to read!  I constantly felt like something was missing.  (As Kuskin writes in her poem, I felt like "less of a person and more of a yam"!)  I am very grateful that now, many years later, I can usually find time to read every day. I like moving forward on that civilized track!