Things We Don't Want to Do

Everyone - I don't care who you are - everyone has things he or she doesn't want to do. As a student, I think that it's safe to say that we've all had to read things we don't want to. As an English major to be, I have enjoyed many of the books I've had to read. I loved Romeo and Juliet, King Lear, The Crucible, The Poisonwood Bible, Northanger Abbey, The Great Gatsby, etc. They were all fantastic, and if you're unfamiliar with any of them, exit out of this blog, shut down your computer, and run - not walk - RUN to your library. Find these books, sit in a corner, and read them cover to cover. They changed my life and the way I look at literature.


Sometimes though, we are not so fortunate when we are assigned readings for class. For example, I detested 1984, The Awakening, The Heart of Darkness, The Communist Manifesto, Apology of Socrates etc. Occasionally, we must confront a written work - as occurred when I confronted these - that leaves us exhausted, discomforted, or just plain bored.  While all of these works have respectable reputations and content - and I'm sure some of you out there love these writings or find them inspirational/wise - I would be lying if I said I enjoyed reading them.

Great! Thanks Amanda for listing the books you've loved and hated reading...What's your point? Well, my friends, I have three points. First, because this blog is not on some academic list of must-reads, I know that you are reading this out of choice, and I want to thank you for that.  Second, sometimes we do not know what tools we need to guide us through our lives (academic or otherwise). Thus, every once in a while, we must embrace the sometimes unpleasant advice or tools that come our way because we end up the better for it. Literature can be one of these tools if we allow it to influence us. Thirdly, when we do stumble upon tools or advice that we enjoy and can apply to our lives, the city bells should be rung, the neighbors must be awakened, family and friends must be called, every social networking site we engage in must be updated. The entire world should hear you shout: I HAVE FOUND SOMETHING WONDERFUL!

Therefore, we come to the reason I simply had to post about this phenomenon: I HAVE FOUND SOMETHING WONDERFUL! I signed up for a class at the beginning of the semester that I have regretted.  The class exhausts me to the point that I often do not remember walking from the class back to my dorm when the hour and a half of allotted class time finally comes to a merciful end. The only redemptive aspect of this class lies in a single book we have been assigned. If you're Catholic, not Catholic, don't understand Catholicism, or think you understand Catholicism, this book - if you let it - will blow your mind! I hate to talk up a book to the point that it cannot live up to its expectations, but Understanding the Sacraments Today by Lawrence E. Mick enlightened me to several aspects of my faith that I always knew, but either didn't understand or didn't know how to explain. I figured I would share this little tidbit with you because I HAVE FOUND SOMETHING WONDERFUL! God Bless y'all and have a wonderful day!