I’m a Reader: On Reading as a ‘Hobby’

I’m a reader. Always have been, and hope to always be.  And usually when I admit this (freely), I get one of two responses…

Awww, I don’t have time to read, but I’m so happy you have time (or something else passive agressive).

That’s awesome, what are you reading (or something else really awesome)?

There is nothing wrong with either of these responses. I like the second response much better than the first, but I’ve gotten used to both answers. Why? Because we live in the current climate we live in.

As a reader, you open yourself up to a myriad of new ideas from others. You may agree with them, or you may disagree with them–or it may lead to a conversation where you come up with something completely different. You open your imagination to worlds that were only open to someone else’s imagination previously.  It is mind blowing that this has been available to us for so many years.

But still, we have detractors.

People tend to always be ‘busy.’ They don’t have time for things. They’re on the go. They have a bag that they carry that has too much stuff. They are on their phone 24-7. It’s a really trying time for us to be mindful because there are so many ‘things’ going on. And that’s just personally, not taking family or jobs into account.

I get it, I do. But for me it is about priorities. It is about finding a few minutes here and there to take some time for me. Whether it be on my tablet, in a book or just on my phone’s ebook app. Yeah, it is to decompress. Yeah, it is to relax. Yeah, it is to make my brain feel better and used and take away the types of stagnation that may occur during the course of daily life. That few minutes you may take to straighten your hair or manicure your nails is a few minutes for me of reading.

Of course, a way for me to read would be to read WHILE I was straightening my hair (have done it) OR while getting a manicure. I’ve also been able to listen to audiobooks on commutes–that helps a LOT.

So it’s not that you’re too busy. It’s that you have other priorities. And that’s fine. Just don’t either tell me that my ‘hobby’ is cute or that you don’t have the time. Just say you don’t… It’ll make us both happier.

What do you think–do you have a better way to handle a ‘not a reader’ or ‘reader hate’? Please share in the comments below.