There are many ways to convey information: spoken words, written words, electronic words. There are even words as knots on a web of cords. The Incas of Peru used a complicated pattern of knots to write their records of empire. This is one of the most interesting and unusual “written languages” in the world. By their very nature, the forms, symbols and words of every language offer distinct ways of perceiving the world, interacting with their expressions and implying reactions by the people who use them.
A great storyteller will be a great storyteller regardless of his or her medium. Yet the way the story is conveyed to us matters greatly. In one of the Star Trek movies, Captain Kirk caresses a book because he loves the way it feels in his hands. He loves the experience of reading it rather than having the computer impart the same text. The medium becomes part of the experience that creates the message of the book. Consider how we attach another level of meaning to the book in our hands when we think this was my mother’s Bible or my dear friend is the author of this book, this was the first book in my library, so and so gave me this book, this book changed my life, etc.
Philip Martin, writing in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette*, makes this point very well as he compares reading a book to reading from a computer screen:
“Paper takes up space, and the ability to arrange it in space is one of its advantages. Also, reading off a piece of paper held in your hand is different than reading off a screen, in part because the physical nature of paper allows us to use our tactile senses – our fingers and hands – to navigate our way through documents. Reading off a screen transfers some of the place-keeping and navigational responsibilities to the brain, causing it to be more taxing.”
This leads to another consideration: how does reading a book in any form change not only the experience of reading but also the reader? There is no doubt that books make an impact on us. I can testify to many books that they changed my life. I could even rank the top ten that profoundly altered my thinking about truth, hence my life also. Why read for any other propose than inviting change? We should read the way we eat … to stay alive and enjoy the process! Some reads taste better than others but they can all be digested for our benefit! Even the poorly written, dull or error prone book can point us to a new and better direction. Reading is like the rest of life … trial and error and then fulfillment!
“The Preacher sought to find delightful words and to write words of truth correctly. The words of wise men are like goads, and masters of these collections are like well-driven nails; they are given by one Shepherd. But beyond this, my son, be warned: the writing of many books is endless, and excessive devotion to books is wearying to the body.” Ecclesiastes 12:12
Nevertheless, the right and balanced reading of books and the Book are “well driven nails” that enable us to hold onto the truth that will invigorate, direct and electrify our living. The key is not to go beyond or draw back from the leadership of the One Shepherd Who has given us His message to read!
“But My righteous ones will live by faith (in what I have said and written), and if they draw back I will have no pleasure in them.” Hebrews 10:38
*"Reader’s Remorse: Have books lost their shelf life?," Philip Martin, Arkansas Democrat Gazette, Sunday, April 5,2009
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