Reading Gene

The love of books and reading is in my genes. My maternal grandmother inherited some notebooks filled with her daily writing since she was about my age now. When I read it, I realized that she might not get formal higher education. But, I’m sure she read some books and newspapers then. Following the family tree, my mother grew up with a charm of N.H. Dini’s novels and personal life. She even said to me that her previous goal after graduating from high school was becoming a flight attendant, globetrotting, and then write novels. But my grandmother wouldn’t let her. It was around late 70s and they lived in a small city in Central Java. So, it considered normal to be conservative. Therefore, my mother pursued bachelor in English Literature and became a book translator.

As a daughter of a book translator, I was so lucky to get an abundance of children books for free from her office. I still remember the books, the main character of the series. It was a tuxedo cat with a round face. Me and my sister also got magazine subscription from Bobo to Gadis Magazine when we turned into teenager. I was so absorbed by the glossy images of the magazines that made want to become a magazine editor, to be like Anna Wintour or Petty Fatimah or Sarah Sechan to be exact, when I was in high school. It was totally impossible dream though and I had to bury my dreams later on. I would like to tell you why on another post.

I grew up with reading books and magazine as an entertainment and escapism. My parents was not wealthy enough to let their daughters play video games or other costly toys. Books and magazines became my only asset of pleasure then. I borrowed most of my books in some books and comic rental, than bought it from bookstore. Since my childhood was not exciting much, experiencing to go in to the narration and fantasy of books became an effortless way to escape from reality. Eventually, I become an avid reader for only the amusement and woolgathering. My academic raport at school was not affected by my hobby of reading.

A year ago was a turning point. I was in a late depression phase (or maybe just a Saturn Return). I decided to off from social media for a while to read more books. It happened during Ramadhan too. I read some books from Brene Brown, A. Helwa, to Natasha Lunn. Reading books turned into my kind of therapy. It lessened my anxiousness. It pruned my overthinking. Reading books feed my mind, my soul, and my brain with more nourishing content. I have never looked back. I will always read books and learn from it throughout my entire life.

It’s a natural thing I guess when I like to write something, after I read so much books. I regulary write some notes on my journal, but it’s not enough. So this is me starting my journey to write something publicly. I would like to train my writing skills, to pour my thoughts on some of my favorite themes. I may write some book reviews, travel stories, and many more. Hopefully, it will be quite meaningful to digest for all the readers and the guests (I mean, you). I expect some worthwhile connections too in real life.

See you later,

TNTY.