Books, Stories and Life Journey
What if you can open a new world of possibilities one book at a time?
When I was a child growing in Brasil, there was no internet back in time, decades ago. No easy access to the world but from TV, newspaper, radio, letters. Books were our primary educational resource and primarily as a school requirement. Remember? Books were also a place to exercise our imagination, escape to a different reality, or be able to accept our reality.
Being Japanese-descent, passionate for music and singing and dancing, multilingual development was part of my education and growth in the community. Speaking the same language or not, it did not matter. We made ourselves understood with gestures, eyes, nods. Pages turning from the right to the left or pages turning from the left to the right. It did not matter. They were books!
“How do you show in your life what you have learned?”
When it came to learning English, it was also an incredible adventure. I was constantly eager to know more. I, somehow, convinced my parents to subscribe to the National Geographic magazine, in English, which I knew was very expensive and of limited access as international shipping. Whatever I had to negotiate for it, it was worth it.
It was amazing to have the beautiful magazines at home (which I treated as books), at a special place. Pictures, photos, maps, meanings without words. Meanings with words. I took the time and joy reading and then went back to the best parts and places.
It was far beyond language learning; it opened up the doors to a world much bigger than I could know. I could learn about the places where my father had been traveling for work, dream of places I wanted to see in the future, contribute somehow and work with WWF to save the whales. I also started a pen-pal friendship circle. For those too young to know, this was a way to have friends abroad by exchanging letters.
I am very grateful for the opportunity and support I was given and for my parents and grandparents' best efforts into excellent education for the family.
What perhaps started with "learn a language" goal ended up being the beginning of embracing different cultures, building relationships with different people around the world, knowing other ways of living and doing things. All that contributed to my character as well. I am also grateful for the opportunities to practice and live a joyful life in stillness and in adversity. There is still so much to learn!
“What if each one of us could be this beautiful channel of love and giving? ”
Some say that the books the person reads can tell a lot about a person. Maybe. Maybe not. It is not the content of the book itself that matters, but the lenses from the person's life experiences, where the focus is on the moment of reading and the person's willingness and ability to experiment and apply the new perspective and learnings in daily life. Learning is a beautiful and unique active process if we embrace it! How do you show in your life what you have learned?
It is a joy to witness continuous acts of selfless generosity such as the ones I see in The Learning Farm, Ubuntu Library, and other initiatives by Khuba International. People donate their time, talents, or money because they can and because they love. It is an exercise that is free, brings freedom, and the best of all, it can be done. What if each one of us could be this beautiful channel of love and giving?
I am honored and grateful to have the Bible as my main library and for the chance to put into practice all the learnings. Hopefully, one day, a library in multiple languages. More than ever, the world needs doers. Doers who help others to see the wonders of the world.
Speaking about books, here are other books on my current reading table. I am either learning from them or get inspired by them:
WILSON, J. R. (2013). God's good world: reclaiming the doctrine of creation. Grand Rapids, Baker Academic.
(2019). COACH MODEL FOR CHRISTIAN LEADERS: powerful leadership skills for solving problems,... reaching goals, and developing others. [S.l.], MORGAN JAMES PUBLISHING.
GOLDSMITH, M., LYONS, L., & FREAS, A. (2003). Coaching: o exercício da liderança. Rio de Janeiro (RJ), ELSEVIER.
BURNETT, W., & EVANS, D. J. (2016). Designing your life: how to build a well-lived, joyful life.
JOHNSON, W. (2020). Disrupt yourself: master relentless change and speed up your learning curve.
HUANG, L. (2021). EDGE: turning adversity into advantage. PIATKUS Books.
PHELAN, T. W. (2016). 1-2-3 Magic. Sourcebooks.
LANG, S. (2019). Grumpy Monkey. Random House Books for Young Readers.
GARCIA, G., & TAN, Y. (2019). Listening with my heart: a story of kindness and self-compassion.
STEWART, S., & SMALL, D. (2009). The gardener. New York, Farrar Straus Giroux.
Gratefully,
