Posted in Misc Musings
A library is not a luxury but one of the necessities of life.
Most homeschoolers, myself included, read this quote from Henry Ward Beecher and say, "Amen!" Most of us also assume that the library of which Rev. Beecher speaks is the home library. (Regardless of the fact that most of us are well-known to our local public librarians. A few of us are even fortunate enough to have our own "hold" shelves at our local libraries.) Books are portals to other worlds, minds, personas, and times. They provide comfort, escape, conflict, insight, and knowledge. In a recent interview with Reader's Digest, actor and fellow homeschooler, Will Smith, asserted:
Books in the Kitchen:
I know how to learn anything I want to learn. I absolutely know that I could learn to fly the space shuttle because someone else knows how to fly it and they put it in a book. Give me a book and I do not need somebody to stand up in front of the class. (Will Power, Readers Digest, December 2006)
Does access to books make teachers unnecessary? In my opinion, quite the contrary. Such access simply increases the number of teachers to which we have access. The Scriptures tell us that "where there is no guidance the people fall, but in abundance of counselors there is victory" (Proverbs 11:14). An overflowing library is a great resource to both homeschool student and homeschool teacher (in our school, the teachers are just more advanced students). It is this philosophy which causes Frodo and I to nod in agreement and empathy with Cicero who said, "A room without books is like a body without a soul." It also causes us to have a house that looks like this:Books in the Kitchen:
Books in the Living Room:
Books in the Schoolroom:
Books in the Bathroom:
Books on the Stairs:
Books in the Bedroom:
Books behind Books in the Bedroom:
Books in the Kids' Room:
Books on the Nightstand of the Next Generation:
Obviously, to now steal an oft-quoted line from Erasmus, "When I have a little money, I buy books; and if any is left, I buy food and clothing." Want proof? Just say the phrase "library book sale" in our presence... then get out of the way.
But why read any books? To gain knowledge, you might say. To get into a good college... paid for with academic scholarships. Or to get a better job which will allow you achieve a nicer standard of living. As a Christian, I would have to say that the reason for reading books, for educating one's self under the tutelage of the many counselors embodied in the authors of those books, is to be able to communicate with the Living God through the primary means which He chose to communicate to us, His creation.
He created the world with His words:
He carved the words of His Law into stone:
He is the Word:
But why read any books? To gain knowledge, you might say. To get into a good college... paid for with academic scholarships. Or to get a better job which will allow you achieve a nicer standard of living. As a Christian, I would have to say that the reason for reading books, for educating one's self under the tutelage of the many counselors embodied in the authors of those books, is to be able to communicate with the Living God through the primary means which He chose to communicate to us, His creation.
He created the world with His words:
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light.
- Genesis 1:1-3
- Genesis 1:1-3
He carved the words of His Law into stone:
Now the Lord said to Moses, "Come up to Me on the mountain and remain there, and I will give you stone tablets with the law and the commandment which I have written for their instruction."
-Exodus 24:12
-Exodus 24:12
He is the Word:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
-John 1:1
-John 1:1
God chose to communicate to us through language. Therefore, we have an obligation to master language, dialogue, and debate, so that we can understand the Scriptures He has given us and communicate the truths found there to others. This was clearly understood by the founders of Harvard University who included in their 1642 copy of the student handbook:
Let every student be plainly instructed and earnestly pressed to consider well: the main end of life and studies is to know God and Jesus Christ, which is eternal life.
So, I implore you, buy books, borrow books, read books, study books, digest books. Find your place in the Great Conversation. Dialogue with the Living Word. Teach your children well.
And don't forget, since we are in the Christmas season and scurrying to buy gifts for our loved ones and trying to find the often elusive answer to the question, "What do you want for Christmas?", I leave you with this:
And don't forget, since we are in the Christmas season and scurrying to buy gifts for our loved ones and trying to find the often elusive answer to the question, "What do you want for Christmas?", I leave you with this:
I would be most content if my children grew up to be the kind of people who think decorating consists mostly of building enough bookshelves.
-Anna Quindlen (author of How Reading Changed My Life), "Enough Bookshelves," New York Times, 7 August 1991
So, if you have a little money, buy books; if there is any left over, buy bookshelves... and a cup of chai.
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