Prayers for More Books, and the Time to Read Them.

"When I write poetry, I think of it as praying on paper," a Roman Catholic priest once told me. The past few days/daze I've been nearly giddy with delight, because of my return to blogging. I'd truly forgotten how incredible the connection feels: the lone act of typing, the stillness as I re-read (I make NO changes to my Blog posts, they exist as an outpouring, Un-edited, of thoughts-in-my-head)before hitting "Post", the excitement when someone--known or unknown to me--posts a comment. I cannot fathom how other people DON'T WANT to write. More puzzling to me, are those who say "I don't like to read" or "I don't enjoy reading; I'd rather be outside." If you don't like to read, then you either have a learning disability, a vision problem, or a very low IQ---I know I'm going to regret saying words that will be, ultimately, judged as very harsh--but that's how I feel, that's what I believe. And saying you don't enjoy reading, because you'd rather be outside? There's a simple solution: take the book/magazine/iPad/Kindle/Nook/e-book with you! If it were not for books--for stories from the Roman Catholic Saints I read as a young girl (St. Theresa of Liseux (known as "The Little Flower") is the Saint I selected, at about age 10, as my "Confirmation Saint"), to "Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl", which became my favorite book--and one I've read 25 times at last count, I think I could not have grown to love the literature which later shaped the work I chose to study in college: literature, plays, theatre, and, ultimately--acting.It shaped my very LIFE. What's the biggest fear I have, besides obvious fears like losing my parents, sis,nieces,aunts, and hubby and other loved ones, to death? I fear not getting to finish reading all the books I want to read. On my I-Have-The-Book-Now-I-Want-The-Time-To-Read-It-List, right now: *"Unsaid", a novel "Whose Song? and other stories", a collection from Thomas Glave (I purchased a copy from him, personally at Indiana University Writer's Conference(I was there as a participant in the Poetry Track), in 2004--I've read a few of his tender stories, and keep returning to them, as one would, to a hot meal, for nourishment) *"Dark Places", by Gillian Flynn "His Lovely Wife", by Elizabeth Dewberry "A Small Hotel", by Robert Olen Butler *"A Brief History of Time", nonfiction, by Stephen Hawking (I read it twice in the past, but it was over twenty years ago, sigh) *"Object of Beauty", a novel by Steve Martin (one of my fav contemporary writers--his essays in The Atlantic are illuminating) *"The N-Word" , a book on culture and language Books I want, but don't yet possess: *Two novels, including "Elza's Kitchen", from the brilliant writer, Marc Fitten *Four new books of poetry from four local poets who I admire *Countless "classics" that I missed, or never (yet!) got around to reading... What are some books that are your favorites? Which books do you still yearn to read? Peace, kids.