Tuesday Tea | For the Love of Reading

Good morning! Today I will be making time to do one of the activities that I love most: reading.

Do you love to read?

Good news for us readers: A recent Yale University study discovered that avid readers live an average of two years longer than people who do not read. Reading is a calming activity that improves brain function  and decreases stress.

Reading, particularly fiction or books with strong main characters, also develops you ability for empathy. By reading various perspectives, we learn to see other points of view and feel the emotions of the person or people we are reading about. Even when we do not necessarily agree with the perspective of the person we are reading about, we are learning about them, learning to understand them, and teaching ourselves empathy. This skill is especially useful while teaching young children. Fictional stories and pictures books teach children about other people, how to see new world views, and to treat others the way they want to be treated.

And if you are not a big reader, you can still take in the benefits from reading every so often. Perhaps you have not found a book, magazine, or blog that writes about something that truly interests you. What do you love to do the most? How do you spend your days? What kinds of people do you like to meet or spend time with? You will be surprised what books you will be able to find based on your own interests.

Us avid readers already know how magical reading can be. I am going to take some extra time to read this morning. I hope that a good book finds its way into your day!