What is your passion?

I’m not talking about the passions common to many of us–our faith, our family, our friendships. I’m talking about the hobby that brings you the most joy and never fails to pique your interest.

For my brother, it was fishing, specifically bass fishing. For my husband, it’s sports, especially University of Tennessee sports, NFL Fantasy Football, NBA’s Boston Celtics, and MLB’s Pittsburgh Pirates. For my friend and neighbor Ruth, it’s painting (and she’s very talented). For several men in our church, its’ golf.

“I can’t imagine being so obsessed by a hobby,” I told my husband one day. I wasn’t being critical. I was actually envious. What would it be like to be so enamored with a hobby you were guaranteed never to be bored because you always had something to do that interested you? I’ve been very open that retirement, for me, can be pretty boring, likely due to my circumstances, so I wanted to have that passion, that interest, that diversion from the routine of everyday life.

Today, though, while walking Draco, it hit me.

I do have a passion for something. It goes back to my childhood and is the one activity I never tire of, the one activity guaranteed to bring me entertainment. It makes me laugh, makes me cry, and makes me dream.

Reading. I’ve loved to read ever since I learned how.

When I was growing up, my parents ate breakfast earlier than I did because of my dad having to leave for work before I was up for the day, and I can remember eating my cereal while reading the cereal box. That’s right, I read the Cheerios box just to have something to read.

I was a regular at the local library, and the highlight of my school experience was when the teacher passed out the Scholastic magazines for us to order books. My parents were not the type to buy toys for me unless it was my birthday or Christmas, but they always allowed me to order a book through Scholastic. What a treat!

I read Nancy Drew and Trixie Belden books and every horse book I could find. I read the classics like Black Beauty and Beautiful Joe, and I read Little Women so many times, the cover was worn with use.

I graduated to more mature fare in my teens, and my author preferences have ranged from Janet Daily’s Calder series to Jeffery Archer and John Grisham. My current favorites are Kristin Hannah and Lisa Wingate, and my current favorite book is Horse by Geraldine Brooks. I’m in two book clubs, and what I love about them is I am forced to read books out of my usual genre, books I wouldn’t have read otherwise. Most of the time, I end up enjoying the book and resolve to be more diverse in my selections.

Unfortunately, I can’t hold a book and read it anymore, but fortunately there are other options. I can read e-books (only Kindle books) on my iPad with the font set as large as it will go. While this is manageable, it’s not ideal. There are about eight to 10 words per screen. Plus my reading speed is about like a second grader, so sometimes it’s just not worth the effort.

But audiobooks are available 24 hours a day and only a touch away. I have two apps on my iPad and phone. One is the Libby app through Tennessee Reads. All you need is a library card through your local library, and you can check out e-books and audiobooks as well as magazines. Because I’m considered to be blind, I also have Bard, a service for the blind that allows me to download audiobooks or have Braille books sent to my house, free of charge. Another trick I have learned is if I purchase an e-book on Kindle, Alexa will read the book to me. I can use some accessibility features like Voice Over on my phone also.

So do I have a hobby about which I’m passionate? Absolutely.

Reading, or in my case, listening to books. From the Bible to fiction to biographies to educational to magazines, my world is ever expanded beyond the confines of my home and my community. I can travel to places I’ll never go and visit past and future time periods. I can be a lawyer, a member of the French resistance during World War II, or deliver books on horseback to rural Appalachia during the Depression.

I could go on about the fun and benefits of reading, but this post is already too long. Please don’t misunderstand. As much as I love to read, I don’t want to listen to books all day. I still enjoy other activities and believe in the motto “variety is the spice of life.” But the one constant has always been reading.

What about you? What is your passion?