Alphabetical Escape

I should be doing laundry today. Or ironing. Or taking advantage of the beautiful sunshine and happy 50s temperature and working in my garden. But I have been sick for a week and am just not quite ready to be productive, thus, my activity of choice at the moment is reading. A novel. Reveling in its ability to take me away from my living room and into someone else's. Just like that--in just a few well-crafted sentences.

I have loved reading for as long as I can remember--longer, actually; I can't ever remember not reading. My earliest memories are of books--sitting with them at my mother's feet, or pondering what to select as I searched through shelves in the library my childhood church was blessed to have. I read at home, in my car, on vacation, at meals if I have no companions, at night till I can hold my eyes open no longer. It fascinates and, perhaps, annoys, my husband; "Don't you ever just want to sit?" he asked one time, coming back to the car from a quick trip into the post office to find me with my head in a book.

I do other things, of course. I can watch old movies for hours, can spend all day in the kitchen conjuring up creative foodstuffs, can get happily messy planting a garden or attempting some craft. But books are the passion I return to day after day: when I finish one, if there isn't another waiting, I feel bereft, at loose ends. As with my choice of music, my taste in books is broad--although I have an admitted preference for happy endings and a strong aversion to gore. I choose books based on what I've heard or read about them, because I like the author's previous work, because the cover or title catches my eye, because the overview intrigues me, sometimes simply because the book is the "right" size (an inch to an inch-and-a-half thick, which means I can read it within a week) and the pages have lots of white space with appealing, easy to read type (though those selections must also have one of the previous attributes, as well!).

One of my greatest joys as a mother is that all three of my children love reading. I suppose I took that for granted until I realized at some point during my early carpool days that all children don't. What a sad discovery! I can understand how a child who struggles with language skills would find the act of reading a chore, but why on earth would a child who can read choose not to? Who would want to miss out on those glorious excursions of the mind? Just as I find people who think they hate poetry have simply never been exposed to enough of it, or had an unpleasant encounter with it, I suspect people who don't read--especially children--have suffered the same fate. What a tragedy to miss out on one of life's greatest pleasures--one that requires no work, no expense, no equipment, and no payback!

Okay, maybe some payback: as the new year starts, I encourage you to join me in taking every opportunity to celebrate and share the joy of reading. We've all heard stories about people whose lives have been changed because of reading a book; who knows what impact you could have on a child's life by introducing him/her to Charlotte's Web or The Little Engine That Could? And if reading doesn't bring you joy, I urge you to make an all-out effort to find it--in the pages of a novel, a memoir, a biography, a poetry book, or even a magazine. Join a book club, befriend a librarian, meet an author, do a search for "best books ever written," track down your high school English teacher, whatever it takes, because I promise you, it's worth it. Reading can take you places nothing else can and leave you with a feeling of satisfaction that nothing can take away...not even an election year.

THE TEN BEST THINGS EVER INVENTED FOR MOTHERS

1. Velcro – This time-saving, energy-saving, sanity-saving product was invented in 1941 by George de Mestral, a Swiss engineer who returned home after a hunting trip with his dog one day and was intrigued by all the burrs stuck to his pants and the dog’s fur. He put the burrs under a microscope, discovered their configuration of “hooks” that attached themselves to anything with fibers or hairs, and was inspired to create Velcro (from the French words velour and crochet which, in English, mean velvet and hook). George’s eventual invention is considered by many to be one of the greatest of the 20th century. Any mother who has ever tried to put sneakers on a two-year-old will agree.

2. Disposable diapers – I used cloth diapers with my first two children, convinced that only pure, white cotton cloth was appropriate for my precious babies’ bottoms. By the time Child Number Three came around, I had completely changed my mind, deciding that disposable diapers—while perhaps not the best option for the universe—were definitely the most comfortable, most hygienic, and healthiest option for my little guy. You may disagree, and that’s fine; cloth diapers did well by many centuries worth of babies. But there’s no denying that in certain circumstances—long distance travel, for example—disposable diapers make life infinitely more pleasant for everyone. Even my mother, a purist who continued to make pimiento cheese from scratch long after Kraft offered it up in a jar, sang their praises. She told me how hard it was to be on the road with a baby in the ‘40s and ‘50s. “They had what they called disposable diapers,” she said, “but they were nothing like what you have today. Mothers had a really hard time of travelling with a baby back then. This is a wonderful choice to have.” I agree.

3. Gas pumps that take credit cards – Do you wake up your sleeping child and drag him inside to pay for your gas or do you leave him in his car seat, alone and unattended, but sleeping peacefully? This is the decision I was faced with every time I bought gas in those days after station attendants had stopped coming to the car and pumping gas FOR you but before anyone came up with the brilliant idea to install credit card readers at the pump. Bless whoever that was! Maybe it was a mom.

4. Board books– As a book lover eager to share my passion for reading with my children, I learned the hard way that babies’ enthusiasm can be lethal. I saw more than a few beautiful books destroyed before I figured out that board books was the better choice for the under-5 set. No, you might not find all your favorite tales available in a board book format, but that’s okay; they’ll appreciate a good story later on, even if they haven’t had a chance to gnaw on it first.

5. Baby seats in grocery carts – Why did it take so long for this to be invented? When I think of all the years I hauled pillows and towels and car seats and belts in and out of grocery stores trying to keep my children safe and secured in a grocery cart . . .

6. Playpen – Should you leave your child in a playpen for hours at a time? Of course not. But if you have to go to the bathroom, answer the phone, deal with an emergency, catch your breath, tend to an older child, prevent a disaster, etc., a playpen is a godsend. At least until he is old enough to climb out of it, it’s a place to keep your child safe and in one place long enough for you to deal with the problem at hand.

7. Microwave – Yes, you should nurse your baby if at all possible. But if you can’t, a microwave is a blessing right up there with sliced bread and electricity (and thanks for that, too, Mr. Franklin!) when all that stands between a screaming infant and instant gratification is the temperature of the milk. We moms appreciate microwaves all the way from infancy up through those home-from-college-and-heating-up-leftovers days.

8. Camera – Yes, you were there for the moment, but years after that first birthday, that first day at school, that first dance, that first competition, those photos can transport us. A camera lets you hang on to those memories forever. Digital cameras have made that even better, because they’ve eliminated the expense of printing photos. Click away, mamas! Those moments will never come again.

9. Skype – If you’re not blessed to have your loved ones close at hand, keeping your kids connected to extended family can be a challenge. My brother-in-law was on sea duty when my nephew was born; it was months before he got to see his son. Today, moms and dads in service can tell their children good night every night, read them a bedtime story, and be there for everything from birthday parties to skinned knees thanks to the miracle of Skype. Grandparents don’t have to go months without seeing their grandchildren; they can spend a few minutes together every day. Truly a gift and a miracle when you think about all those pioneer families for whom heading west to a better life meant not seeing their families again for years at a time.

10. Libraries – Books for you, books for your child, as many as you want, and all FREE! Not only that, most libraries offer children’s story hours and special programs such as puppet shows, craft classes, and discussions that will enrich the lives of your whole family. Some of my best memories as a young mother are library outings: watching excerpts from “The Nutcracker,” listening to authors talk about their books, “petting” symphony instruments, looking at art exhibits and, best of all, coming home with armloads of books that translated into hours of quality time together each week . . .now that’s a treasure!

What inventions have you enjoyed and appreciated most as a mother?