By Rhonda Newton
Saturdays are a chance for me to spend a little time on my hobbies and also catch up on household tasks (as one friend recently shared, “adulting is a treadmill”), so I played with various scenarios about when I might be the most successful with the challenge. In the end, I repurposed my usual Saturday morning quilting time to reading time, silencing my phone and skipping my Saturday morning podcast time, knowing that my house would be at its quietest. I’m sure I’ll read more today, but likely in bits and pieces.
I’ve been a voracious reader for more than 50 years. This morning’s quiet, focused reading time made me very aware of 1) how rarely I read print books (my e-reader goes with me most places and 2) how rarely I just read now. I’m usually having lap time with the cat, periodically checking my email, or multitasking by reading while eating breakfast or lunch.
I chose to read the book that is the subject of an upcoming book club for The Griot Institute. I hadn’t had a chance to focus on it so thought this would be a good choice. After my reading time, I only have one chapter remaining so I will actually have finished the book by Wednesday’s event. It’s a thought-provoking book which sent my mind careening in many different directions, and made me aware of wanting to stop and look up some of the examples the author talked about. I’m looking forward for the book discussion.
Title: Imagination: A Manifesto by Ruha Benjamin
Hours read: 2