Defining Moments

For my English class today, we did a radio session with The Apple Seed, which is basically an hour long show about story telling. We each took turns sharing our stories about defining moments in our lives. I'm not sure when they're going to air the show, but you're all welcome to listen to it. Here's a shortened link to get you to their website. http://bit.ly/1k9ZtaL

I'll give you the written version of my defining moment that I shared. Let me take you back to second grade, a little room filled with little desks filled with little people. It was time for our class to go to the library and check out some books. I remember distinctly thinking that I wanted a real adventure. I saw a lot of kids reading some picture books about dogs. As much as I love dogs, I did think, "I do NOT want to read a little dog book."

So I wandered around the library in search of something that would satisfy this book-craving that I had. I spotted a book that I had seen my older sister reading not too long ago, you might recognize the title, The Hobbit. Yeah, maybe a bit thick for a seven-year-old, but I really wanted to know what a hobbit was and what sort of things were going to happen in this story.

I took my book up to the librarian's desk and waited for her to check the book out to me. But she didn't. She looked at me, or perhaps towered over me is a better expression. I've always been on the short side, and when I remember this moment, it was like standing up to a mountain, and she peered over the edge of her gold-rimmed glasses. "You can't read that book." She said it simply, and my jaw literally dropped. What did she mean that I can't read the book? I didn't want to read any other book but that one! And I didn't even know that adults could tell children what books they could and couldn't read. The thought had just never occurred to me.

After a moment, she asked me to open it up to the middle of the book and start reading, and if I could read it then she would let me check it out. Fine! I thought, I will! And I did. And she let me check the book out. Now, I don't want you to think that I read and understood The Hobbit completely when I was seven because I did get bored halfway through and return it. But I knew that in another year or two, I would be able to finish it and enjoy it, and sure enough that's what happened.

So why is this a defining moment? I didn't realize at the time that the librarian was testing me and my knowledge of language when she had me read out loud. I thought that she was just being a malicious, evil librarian, but I don't think that was her intention. I realized though, that I was good at reading and that I really could read whatever I wanted. From that moment on, I just wanted to read more books, bigger books, more complex books. Of course, every book that I read had to be a fantasy, but I made an exception for the Nancy Drew books. I did like those a lot. But from that point on, I knew that I could read anything, and reading became a thousand different adventures.

Oh, and the school librarian never again questioned me about any book. I guess I made my point.