Reading – Part II: Reading Warriors

Throwing Out a Life Line

Sometimes I feel as lazy and apathetic as a slug. I daydream about being passionate and powerful, a warrior. I woke up the other morning, in that half-awake, half-asleep twilight, thinking about the Terracotta Army that was created to accompany the first Emperor of China on his journey into the afterlife. It makes sense to connect bravery, courage, power, skill and all of the attributes of a warrior with something that goes far beyond this life.

I wondered if there were any warrior-like figures that could lure me out of my apathy, who might motivate me to fight for something bigger than myself, something beyond the here and now. Who are the warriors that I look up to, would want to emulate? Who would I follow in giving myself to something greater?

I thought of Martin Luther King Jr. and Gandhi, both giants in serving a cause, both warriors. And yet what brings me to life is something I find in a couple of other warriors, reading warriors.

In the 1830’s in many places in the United States, it was illegal to teach a slave to read, punishable by a hefty fine and/or considerable time in prison. Slaves themselves were punished with beatings and lashings.

But the lure for freedom, which reading and education could afford to some degree, was so great and considered such an essential to life, that some took the risk. Some did the teaching and some did the learning.

Frederick Douglas, the renowned slave-turned-abolitionist was taught in secret the beginning elements of reading as a child of twelve by Sophia Auld, his master’s wife. After mastering the art of reading, he taught others.

Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani activist for female education was shot in the head in an assassination attempt on October of 2012 in retaliation for her activism work. After her recovery, she remained undaunted, speaking before the United Nations and meeting with various heads of state to promote education for females. She opened a school in Bekaa Valley in Lebanon for refugees, near the Syrian border with the motto “books not bullets. She was co-recipient of the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize, the youngest Nobel laureate.

The love of learning and especially the love reading has always been a part of my life. When I was a kid, growing up in a home filled with domestic violence, my solace and even joy was in books. It was like someone had thrown out one of those old “SOS” life preserver rings to me. I caught it and I’ve never let go. If one thing motivates me, it’s throwing out the life preserver so others might catch it.

What might move you to become a Warrior?

Writing Prompt for the Week: Throwing Out a Life Line