Thursday 27 September 2012

Thankful Thursday #4

I can't remember the first book I read. I'm guessing it was probably the same book everyone else in my class at school read - Kathy and Mark doing something with their dog (was he called Skip?). I do remember being read to and, though I'm sure my Mom must have read to us, it is of my Dad reading to my brothers, sister and I that I recall in the greatest detail. Sometimes Bible Stories from a Children's Bible Story book. I remember that book clearly. Hard-cover  brown and yellow cover, big and heavy. David and Goliath. Jonah and the whale. Daniel in the Lion's Den. All gripping stuff. We loved it. 
Of course, there was also Hans Christian Anderson - we were introduced to 'Thumbelina', 'The Steadfast Tin Soldier' and 'The little Match Girl'. I think my Dad's favourite book though was Grimm's Fairy Tales. He read these grim tales from a dusty tome of a book. Sometimes he would read out the names of the stories and we would choose the one we wanted but mostly I think he always had a particularly story in mind when he chose this book . They were a little darker than Hans Christian Anderson stories. I loved them. Tales like 'One-Eye, Two-Eyes and Three-Eyes', 'The Griffin' and 'The shoes that were danced to pieces.' 
I have very fond memories of my Dad reading to us in the bottom lounge (I'll explain this name one day).We would all sit or lie on the shaggy white carpet and he would sit in a comfy brown chair. At the end of every story we would talk about it - our favourite characters; the ones that scared us or we didn't like; and always a lesson would be snuck in before he sent us off to brush our teeth and jump into bed. Then my parents would come around and tuck us in and kiss us goodnight. Happy Times. 

This is where my love for reading and imagining began. I'm thankful today that my parents read to us and I'm thankful for all the books I have read and still have to read. I hope that tonight children are being tucked up in bed with their heads filled with stories of enchantment, courage, bravery, happily ever afters and a little bit of magic so that their dreams can lead them to great adventures. 

1 comment:

  1. Ha ha... what awesome memories you have J.....I remember my mum reading to me every night. Aren't we lucky to have such awesome parents!

    Chris

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