"Why are you reading that book?"
I can remember the first time I ever asked someone why reading was important. I was around 4 or 5 years old and I was watching TV with my dad (I'm pretty sure it was a Detroit Tigers Baseball game. We would always sit down in our old living room and watch games together). There was a commercial in the middle of one of the innings and I looked over at the kitchen table and I saw my mother reading a book. I walked over to her as innocent as a little 4 or 5 year old could and asked, "Mommy, why are you reading that book?" I still remember her response today. She told me that "Honey, reading books are fun! As you like watching sports with your father, I enjoy getting lost in a good book." I didn't really think much of her response as I went back to my spot in front of the television. After that day, I began to notice things around the house: my Dad reading the morning newspaper, my mom looking in her cook book trying to find a recipe for dinner, my sister doing her homework. These are all memories that I have that led me to the conclusion that these things called "books" are probably something that is important and I should pick one up once in awhile.
When starting my literacy narrative assignment, I tried to think back to my very first memory of reading. I'm not talking about all of the pictures that I have as a baby with a book in my hand, I'm talking about actually sitting down and reading a book for my own enjoyment and pleasure. With that being said, here it is: It was the beginning of the 2nd grade at my school, St. Anne Elementary. My School was a Catholic Grade School in Warren, MI that was the home to students from grades K-8. We had a small reading library in the back of our classroom. Our teacher, Mrs. Miller, gave our class a chance to go to the library and choose a book that each individual student wanted to read. "Table One!" Mrs. Miller shouted. The students at table one jumped out of their seats and ran to the small library at the back of the room. I was not in that group. I thought to myself, "Man, what if I don't get the book that I want..." Mrs. Miller continued calling tables, "Table 2!" "Table 3!" "Table 4!" I looked around the room and finally realized that I was sitting at Table 5. I felt defeated. Mrs. Miller finally said in her boisterous voice, "Table 5!" I got up from my chair, pushed it in and walked slowly back to the small quaint library, both timid and in wonderment. I had never seen such a collection of books before in one area. I looked through a group of books, nothing caught my eye. Finally, I picked up the lone book on the bottom shelf. I examined it and browsed the back cover. I eventually turned it over to reveal the title of this new book: "The Adventures of Captain Underpants." I was in awe of this book. I didn't know what to think with a word like "underpants" in the title. In school, especially a Catholic school like mine, you were not supposed to talk about inappropriate things (and underpants definitely fell into this category). After I chose my book, I returned to my seat and that was when my adventure of reading began...
