We are almost done unpacking for our house except for our books. Pete and I together have collected boxes and boxes of books. Many books have been moved from one house to another house over years. There were even boxes which contained my books shipped from Thailand. I looked around the house and realized that we don't have enough space for them. I started to go through them and thought I would pick ones to keep and some to give. It was a difficult and long process. It was not only time-consuming but also emtional. I smiled at the books that brought me sweet memories, and wiped away the dust from the books that reminded me of the lonely nights in Thailand. In the end, I finally decided to keep most of them, and Pete resecued some of 'give-away' books.
I have been having an inner conversation with myself about books. While my friends are getting Kindle or IPad, I still cling to books and library (bricks and paper library but digital library). I just cannot let go of that physical touch and the ink smell from books. Maybe that was from my childhood when living and breathing books in my mom's bookstore. Since little, I helped my mom signing off the books that we received everyday; checked them in, sorted them and put them on the shelves where they belong. I liked to just look at my work and admired how those books were written.
The advantage of growing up in a bookstore was that I got to read every book I wanted. And because I had to return the books back to the shelves for customers, I was trained from an early age that I needed to take care of the books. No dog ears, no stains. This habit is still with me to this day and that is how I teach my son.
So you see, I love books. I love touching them; smelling them. How can I get the same sensational feeling from Kindle or Ipad? My boss, who is my Dad's age, argued with me that one should not be too restricted to where one obtains knowledge and wisdom. If technology helps us to access to the most knowledge in a limited of time, it should be seen as a good thing and we should embrace it.
Logically, I could not disagree with him. However, emotionally, I think I will never give up paper books despite how heavy it is to bring them on the trip or how many shelves I need to get for storing them.
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