Books. Novels. Short Stories. These affect us more than we know. Without Books, our race would be nothing. In books we have recorded our entire history, the hopes and aspirations of millions. Books are the direct by-product of our sentience, and are what separates us from Apes. Beyond the historical perspective, books shape our views. They inspire generations to do something that never would've been thought of without them. Gandhi never would've conducted his Salt March without being encouraged by Jesus' civil-disobedience. The First Continental Congress would never have drafted the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution without the influence of the Magna Carta. Books don't only record our past/ They shape our future.
Books also work on a smaller scale. Instead of revolutionizing a nation, they could just change the mind of one. Books have affected me since a young age, and continue to affect me. I read 13 Reasons Why back in middle school when I was going through a hard time. One of my friends had just committed suicide, and I wasn't dealing with it very well. I couldn't figure out why he would take his life, before he had time to even experience it. I was mad at him for doing it, and mad at the world for letting it happen. I started reading a lot of books and papers on suicide, trying to figure out why he would do a thing like that. While not all the books were sad, 13 Reasons Why impacted me deeply. It flared a bit for the dramatic, but it opened my eyes to the fact that it wasn't something strange and rare that happened to him. It was something common; it was us. He committed suicide because the people around didn't support him, didn't protect him. It's the people around us that can hurt us the most, but often times we don't realize till it's to late. Thinking about him, and having read the book, I started to change. I make an effort to be nice to everyone, not just those close to me. I volunteer in my free time, and try to make sure that nothing like this ever happens again. Suicide is a serious issue. It's a psychological illness that beats us down and corners us until we believe that its the only way out, only way to find peace. It is preventable, and it is curable. Only we, the people who caused it, are able to fix it. We must be kind, and we must be aware of the reactions of those around us. The only problem is kindness and awareness are so rare these days. It is not as common as it used to be. People have become so absorbed in themselves and technology, they are deaf to the desperate cries of those around them.
No comments:
Post a Comment