PERHAPS one day in the not-too-distant-future reading actual books will be seen as a very unusual and quirky activity, along with cursive writing and NOT playing war games online with millions of other gamers. Perhaps my great grandchildren will look at old photos of me and say to themselves, "Whoa! He really read books?" But they may not understand will they? They may not know the miracle and wonder of books, and how they not only expand our minds and souls but transport us into the lives of uncounted characters from all ages. I pity them if in their lives books are but rustic antiques of another age. They will miss one of the great gifts of life: books.
Like many of you I was fortunate to begin reading at a young age and by the time I was 9 or 10 was reading great epic novels like The Big Sky by Guthrie, or heart filling books like Big Red by Kjelgaard, or the adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. My love affair with books began at a young age in the quiet hours of winter, high in the Sierra's in my mountain home as snow drifted outside. I was safe and engaged in another world with mythic warriors, and beloved dogs, and bold pioneers. Their lives and trials and wisdom were shared with me, just a country boy who thrilled with their stories and adventures.
I tried to calculate for this post how many books I've read over the years and could not come to an accurate total, but it's somewhere between 2,000 and 2,500 books. I mean right now, today, I've got three books going. I'll jump from one to the other as my mood guides. I'm reading Steven Pressfields' Alexander, the Virtues of War, and an exceptional book by Jack Kornfield, The Wise Heart, on Buddhist psychology, and a fun novel by Bernard Cornwell, Death of Kings
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Indeed, I consider The Wise Heart to be one of the best books I've ever read, and in fact am on my 4th reading. This book is a compendium of Buddhist wisdom on how to live a fulfilling and peaceful life. I highly recommend it.
Back in the fall of 2007 when the economy was on the knifes edge and construction was dead in the water I took ill. I was a construction sub contractor. This near-perfect storm devastated my income and bank account. I had to sell my library. Books I had collected over a life time went to another. I saved a few but most were gone. Hundreds of books, some quite valuable, went out the door in boxes. Broke my heart. But now my library is on the build once more.
Above: a portion of my growing library.
I did save some of my favorites: a collection of Louis L'Amour westerns along with several volumes from Larry McMurtry of Lonesome Dove fame. And there were some historical fiction books as well from C.S. Forester and Bernard Cornwell, and Steven Pressfield. I managed to save War and Remembrance from Herman Wouk.
Actually this book changed my life. I was thirty years old when I read this book, a two volume epic of WWII. I came upon the verse pictured below telling of a young jewish girl being led to the gas chamber with her mother. It was a cathartic moment. I had recently become aware of the atrocities of war, the hideous pathological activities of corrupt bankers and capitalists who funded and promoted war and this paragraph hit my heart and soul with a blow that that inflamed me. I vowed I would dedicate myself to peace, to working toward the end of war. Thus it is that at this very time I am writing a series on my blog entitled "The Roots of War, The Hope of Peace". Dedicated to all the little children who have perished in war. Even as I write this my soul shudders. Such is the power of a book.
Ah yes, books bring to us the ever lasting strife between good and evil. Who, having read the trilogy, The Lord of the Rings is left untouched? These books speak a language of soul and heart that move us and change us, and hopefully make us better and wiser persons.
Of course I've read a good many self-help books from Loving What Is by Byron Katie to the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu (well, that little gem is not necessarily a self-help book but it sure helped me!)
Alright. I ramble. So I will conclude with two more of my favorites that I highly recommend. These will appeal to male readers mostly because they deal with war and martial arts but are both far more than that. The first is The Religion by a great word master, Tim Willocks. This is a wild adventure and love story that takes place on the island of Malta in 1565 as the Muslims besiege Christian fortifications. The Christian knights named themselves The Religion. It is a fascinating book and next to The Lord of the Rings is my very favorite. A true masterpiece.
The second book I strongly suggest you read is to Japan what Gone With the Wind is to readers here in the US. Musashi is a brilliantly written epic of a young man who becomes the greatest swordsman of all time. Of course it is also a love story, but much more. This book captures the deep commitment to spiritual path that transforms a warrior into a holy man. It is truly a classic to be cherished and held in the highest of esteem in anyones library.
And so there you have it my friends, a brief foray into my heart and my library. We are so blessed to have the voices of so many authors speak to us from their creations, books.
