I read a book

In a recent workshop on “Skills for writing a scientific paper”, held in Meerut, one of the speakers raised a thought-provoking question about our reading habits. This inquiry served as a reminder that I hadn’t devoted much time to my beloved pastime lately. Somehow, it is easier to turn on Netflix and chill. It takes not much effort. It is simply a few clicks away. But reading a book requires effort. Processing the words, creating the scenario in your head. Letting the imagination flow. Giving the characters color and contour. Dog-earing or carefully placing a bookmark. Re-imagining the story again once you come back to the book. Yes, it does take effort. That effort feels like a task these days and so I simply turn to the OTT platform.

This time, however, I made a conscious effort and managed to complete a book I had started a few months ago. The book, a beautifully crafted narrative centered around the loss of Shakespeare’s son, Hamnet, surprisingly contained a few valuable insights into the epidemiology of the plague too. I placed the book carefully in my library. Looking at all the books arranged meticulously, I felt my heart swell. This was my secret addiction. Buying new books although my bank balance warned me against it. I have this urge to visit the bookstore at the airport and buy a new book every time I travel. I always end up sleeping on the flight. Yet, somehow I have always convinced myself that I need to read a book during my journey. On the last trip home, I had successfully fought the urge to buy a book from the airport. But I reached home to find this beautiful book- Hamnet- on my brother’s bookshelf. I found it with me on my flight back. Not stolen. Just borrowed. Borrowed forever.

Hopefully, immersing myself in this reading experience will remind me of the joy of reading. And writing. It has been two years since I posted anything in this space. I sure have written much during that time – exams, research publications, application forms, acceptance letters, complaints, love letters….But nothing that found its way here. Till today, when I finished reading. So, ya. I read. I wrote.