Happy Book Day

It’d been so long. I hadn’t read a book—turned the pages, used a bookmark, let it rest on my night stand—since before Quade…pre-Q, as we say. I used to roam the aisles of Barnes & Noble slowly, sipping coffee. And after all rows had been combed I’d pick a book—the book! Now you should see me when I run into a store. I’m a maniac. The goal is to get in and out as fast as possible. The only reason I’m there in the first place is because I wasn’t able to get what I needed online from my phone while nursing. All this to say, I haven’t had time to go to Barnes & Noble and pick out a book! And I’ve thought about the library, but the cold weather, Q’s potential to scream like a pterodactyl, and the fact that I probably couldn’t get through a book before it was due ended that thought.

And then the Kindle. Someone generously offered to give me their Kindle. Not sell it to me. But give it to me. They dropped it off for me to see if I’d like. I tried. Oh how I tried. I brought it to bed with me. I let my fingers practice what it’d be like to turn the page. On off. On off. On off. “Here, B, you try it,” I said as I shoved it at my husband. “What do you think?” I asked excitedly, wanting him to encourage me that it would be fantastic! But, alas, he knows me too well and we’re too much alike. “I think you won’t use it,” he said. Big sigh. I knew he was right. I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t see myself using it. I sadly gave it back.

Then, a couple Wednesdays ago. There it was. A book. Mom had stopped by to drop a few things off, and in the pile she left on the kitchen table was Shauna Niequist’s book Bread and Wine. It was so pretty. Hardcover. I couldn’t wait to open it.  So, the next morning as the sun was rising and I was nursing, rather than mindlessly sliding my finger across my phone, checking the weather, Facebook, my email, etc., I read. The words were like pillows. Soft, comfortable, warm. I couldn’t get enough. Wow—reading’s like riding a bike, I thought, you don’t really lose it! I read, read, and read, and felt a little bit of my pre-Q self return. When Q finished eating I read aloud to him as he stared at me milky-eyed. And when I nursed him after his morning nap, I read some more. By the time I crawled into bed with B that night, he looked at me with eyebrows raised? Really, Heather? Half the book already? Yup.

It’s actually the perfect book to begin reading again on. It’s light. It’s fun. It’s inspiring. It’s a blend of short stories and fun recipes. And if you get to feed a five month old four times a day, you can read half of it in a day! I actually made a recipe from it last night, too, and it was great and so easy.

Perhaps the best part of my book though is that on the inside cover, mom left a note:

Happy Hump Day

Happy Darn Cold Day

Happy Flat Tire Day

Happy Dermatology Appointment Day

Happy “thank you for taking us to the airport in two days” Day.

Relax and Enjoy.

As you can tell, my mom is a rockstar. On that particular day, I was in need of some brightness, and like all rockstar moms do, somehow she just knew—she maybe even knew without really knowing that she knew I needed something bright.

And here’s what I concluded. You can’t write an amazing note on a library book or a Kindle! You need a real book that you get to keep. And any day during which you can relax and enjoy the words of a book—if only for a few minutes while nursing—is a happy day. Which is why I promptly lined up another book (ordered online from my phone to be conveniently delivered to my doorstep).

Happy Book Day!