In this article, I tell my personal story about learning to read. The journey from school reading groups to a providential twist as an adult is shared. If you relate to any part of the story, you may find the courage to embrace reading and start your journey.

Where It All Began

I remember the day. It was the beginning of 6th grade. I was pulled from the regular reading group and placed in another group. When a child was moved, it usually meant a reading problem. The unfortunate move singled me out as one with a reading problem.

This particular year, all of us were in a newly constructed, open-concept classroom school. Anticipation was in the air, so to involve the students, we were asked to submit street names and later voted for the one to be the address for the school. 

All I knew was that the traditional classroom where self-contained needs were met was now a space of portable dividers, cubbies, and round or kidney-shaped tables. There were no actual walls or hallways. And movable dividers were everywhere, and cubbies were stuffed with our notebooks, books, and supplies instead of crammed under our individual desks. 

I could stand in my “classroom” and see three other “rooms” over the cubbies and dividers. The noise of children and adults traveled right over to my ears and grabbed my attention. The voices nearest me were the hardest to hear. And I didn’t have a hearing problem. 

The Challenge

The new environment introduced me to challenges beyond surviving the bus ride, ensuring my pencil was sharpened before class, and the anxiety of everything new. I had to focus and block out all the distractions around me, a challenging challenge for a little girl with an active imagination. Once this move happened, any good memories of reading in school were forever gone.

Do you ever remember leaning over sideways, pretending to retrieve something from the stack crammed under your desk? It was a convenient way to get passed over to read in the larger class. That tactic had no place now. Dread seized me as I wondered what would happen in a small group with nowhere to hide.

So, the group began with a handful of students at a table with the teacher. The rest of the class worked independently, some chattering and some loafing. I wondered how a teacher could control a class when she was off to the side with the few before her. As she repeatedly drew our attention back from looking beyond our group, her voice raised as she corrected students behind us. But she always kept her place in the text and knew who was next to read in our huddled group.

Nevertheless, all this is going on, and I am trying to focus. I didn’t want it to be my turn to read, ever. I hated when the chapter was complete, and the teacher asked the follow-up questions. I could read the words, but I was a shy child and didn’t want to speak much. Additionally, the answers escaped me. Mine was the hidden problem of comprehension.

Who is the main character? I didn’t know. What was the main point? Hum. And it was terrible if the teacher said something like, “Look back through the pages to find the answer,” as she waited for mine. I was relieved to look down, away from her inquiring eyes, but the answer didn’t come as I scanned the pages. I had read every word but didn’t remember much.

Did the open classroom setting impact my reading abilities? I have no idea. But I know that through the years, God graciously preserved in me a love for school, even with several relocations. The variety of people and activities kept my interest, and mostly my grades were good. But reading remained a cause for anxiety. I never developed a love for reading and read only what I had to.

The story just told leads to a redemptive story about something that happened in my twenties. Healing from a particularly dark season of life, a long season, not months, but years, books became my new world. How did that happen?

The Road to Reading

One day, providentially, my mother gave me a book by Janette Oke. I chose bedtime to read it. From the beginning, the book captivated me. My mind took me into the school house, or the church, or on the dusty road. I was there, and my imagination was alive. The characters became part of my life. During the day, I wondered what would happen the next time I visited their worlds. When I realized my mind could transport me into the pages, I knew I would learn how to read.

Honestly, I felt the Lord’s presence. A gift was waiting for me with every turned page. All the noise and pressure of past school days were gone. It was me and a town and her characters. Someone was writing about God’s involvement in people’s everyday lives, and I was riveted. 

Challenges and Solutions

With more and more characters coming into the story, I noticed when a previous character appeared, I might struggle to remember who they were. So, I started writing a character list and a fact about each in front of the book. Then, as I read, I could reference that list. This one exercise helped with comprehension. Tying the characters and places together brought the storyline to life. Any words I didn’t understand, I now had time in my pressure-free world to find their meaning. Of course, my wealth of words increased. I found keys that unlocked skills missed along the way.

Suddenly, reading was pleasant. For the first time, I read for pleasure, not for academic necessity. I had read a variety of books for academic expectations. Still, often, I skimmed over more challenging parts or used cliff notes. This had its own cost and consequences. With expectations from the academic world in the distant past, solutions to my reading venture sprang forth.

What about You?

Maybe you are an adult who, like my parents, never read anything beyond a magazine, newspaper, or cookbook, but you wonder about reading books. You wonder if you are missing something. Could the pages in between the two covers enrich your life? The answer is yes. And can you read for pleasure and look forward to it? I believe you can.

You never know what God has planned. Recently, I spent two years that seemed like drinking from a fire hose in terms of reading to attain a Master’s degree. Speed reading was a new skill to put into practice, but comprehension was not an issue. God deserves all the praise for the healing and help He’s provided me through the years and many gifts along the way in books.

A Few Recommendations:

I hope you press forward into adult reading. So many await your presence on their pages. Father Tim and Barnabas would love you to come along on their hair-raising walks through Mitford in Jan Karon’s series. Thornton Burgess will delight you with lessons learned by his animal characters. And you will eat the fruit of wisdom listening to Corrie Ten Boom’s accounts in the concentration camps and later her world travels.

Additionally, Catherine Marshall will enrich your heart with her chronicles of the illness and death of her famous preacher husband. Her fictional work of Christy will take you into the mountains of East Tennessee to meet those who taught her many lessons.

Even the grade-level children’s books you skimmed through to get to the end of years ago will come alive. Wilbur the pig and the spider’s relationship in Charlottes Webb will delight you. Many children’s books have excellent lessons that serve as refreshing reminders when read today against the backdrop of the dark world.

Books by Frank Pollard, Elizabeth Elliot, Henrietta Mears, Samuel Rutherford, Joni Eareckson Tada, Robert J. Morgon, and many others await you.

My husband has read some of those mentioned and more. Still, after watching a movie recently, he surprisingly embraced books by Karen Kingsbury. With a season in Canada, he entered the world of Anne of Green Gables. And a more recent discovery is F.W. Boreham and his journey with God. Not all mentioned are Christian books but they are wholesome, intellectually challenging, and enriching.

How to Choose Your Books

Since I write about Winning Ways to Follow Jesus, I believe a Christian reader is responsible for what goes in the mind. We are to bring glory to God with whatever we do(I Corinthians 10:31). Our minds are a camera, and there are countless principles and specific verses in God’s Word about guarding the heart and the mind.

Some general rules for my husband and I are to steer clear of graphic or grotesque content, sexual content, foul language or coarse joking, and storylines that exalt sin. That means culturally popular books get passed over. Much of the world’s offerings are not for a Christian reader. We are a chosen people(I Peter 2:9). Even with these parameters, the world of reading is an endless horizon over many genres. I’ve read books that were so pristine that I was motivated to pray for the author to become a Christian because their talent was so lovely.

7 Tips to Wise Reading:

• Choose a time of day when you can focus so your mind can have the joy of escape. 
• Know you can make whatever notes you need to in your book. No one is watching, grading, or waiting for you to read aloud.
• However, reading out loud is excellent for comprehension. You could do this while you are waiting for your cookies to bake.
• Research the author or the motivation behind the book because you will have insight when you open it up.
• Read real books when you can. We love our Kindle readers, but the smell and feel of an actual book is a friend you will love to meet. You can’t make notes for comprehension on a Kindle, at least not the model I use. 
• Never think twice about throwing away a book that wasn’t what you thought.
• Remember, your mind is a camera, and where your imagination goes, there your mind and heart will be.

Call to Action

So, now you know you can become a reader as an adult. The tips and recommendations in this article can give you the confidence to discover some literary treasures. As you explore the recommendations, other must-reads will surface, and you will embark on a fun journey. Start will intermediate children’s books to feel a sense of accomplishment and joy. Since God cares about everything in His children’s lives, He will help you with your book choices and reading abilities.

Welcome to reading!

©Valerie Rumfelt

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