In summary, this short essay by Macfarlane, the author of prizewinning and bestselling books about nature, place, and people, is his reflections on the unique emotional resonance of books given and received and how these acts of generosity "incite generosity." He begins by telling how he met his elderly friend, Don, who gave him books and their walks and conversations about their common love for literature. In between the essay, he shared about half a dozen of books that make a difference in his life and others around him, especially, Patrick Leigh Fermor's A Time of Gifts.
"Not all books received as gifts are transformative, of course. Sometimes the only thing a book gives its reader is a paper cut," writes Macfarlane. Funny and true. Then he continues, "But having been given so many astonishing books over the years, I now, in turn, give away as many books as I can. Birthdays, Christmases - I give books, and pretty much only books, as presents."
This reminds me of what I have done joyfully and aggressively in the past. When I first started blogging in 2010 - and I have a pretty good salary back then when I was working in the management and entertainment industry - I used to giveaways 3 to 5 books per month. I lost most of the connections with the recipients now (since I'm not active on social media anymore except for LEGASI.tv) but I do receive some good feedback from them years after that through email and WhatsApp. Their joy (I assume they were rejoicing) when receiving free books and my joy of giving books are interconnected and mutual. Today I still enjoy giving books but not as often as before. Perhaps this is what Macfarlane meant when he explains, "the gift can be transformative and that the act of giving encourages the onwards circulation of generosity."
Macfarlane ends his essay by telling how he and Don always wrote and sent books to each other after their farewell. One day, Don wrote to say that he had been diagnosed with cancer, and a year or so later, Don died. Rachel, Don's daughter, wrote an email to Macfarlane telling him about the news and letting him know that "reading kept [Don] alive right till the end." I closed the book and walked toward the glass window facing a peaceful lake outside Pustaka Negeri Sarawak library and whispered a thanksgiving prayer: "Thank you for the gifts of reading, Lord. Amen"
#ServeToLead #LeadersAreReaders #TheGiftsOfReading #LetsMakeReadingCoolAgain
To read my other book reviews, CLICK HERE
FB Page: https://facebook.com/LEGASI.tv/
Podcast: http://bit.ly/LegasiSpotify
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/LEGASItv/
THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.
No comments:
Post a Comment