Who doesn’t love spring break? It’s a chance to sleep in, eat homecooked food, and see old friends. For some, however, it can drag on, especially once we’ve all had our fill of binge-watching Netflix. This break, rather than watching mediocre movies or scrolling aimlessly through Instagram to beat boredom, I took up a hobby I hadn’t tried in a while—reading for fun.
Most of us enjoyed reading at one point when we were younger, but after years of book reports, double-entry journals, and huge mandatory reading assignments, the novelty has worn off. We’re all busy, with phones, schoolwork, socializing, and extracurricular responsibilities vying for our attention, and reading often feels too time consuming to truly pursue. When I first started, I struggled to keep my attention on what I was reading, constantly checking my phone or going off to do something else. The more I read though, the more I rediscovered how much I had once enjoyed it. It provided a relaxing break from the distractions of the day, and after a while I really got into what I was reading too.
When I got back from break, reading went on hold as I got back into the swing of the semester, but after a few days, I realized I missed the relaxation of truly getting into a book. I’m still busy, splitting my time among work and activities this semester, but reading has become a way to unwind and slow down. I’m glad I rediscovered my love of reading, and I encourage anyone who once loved to read to do the same. Next time you need to relax or have free time, grab a book off the shelf you haven’t touched in years, forget about reading assignments, papers, and comprehension questions, and read simply because you want to.