My Greatest Passion
Humans are greedy for knowledge, regardless of the topic or field of interest. However, the twenty-first century possesses more information than our brains can process, making the feat of universal genius impossible. Subsequently, society has divided intellectual interests into groups of similarity to combat the anxiety of not knowing. Therefore, a person can become a master in one subject rather than scrutinizing themselves for not understanding the entirety of the world's wonder. As people, we must find an area of study to fulfill our desire for information. I have come to find the act of learning insatiable. I am willing to learn without being discriminatory against a topic, as I value the process and rewards greatly. This truth came to me early on, and my love of learning has only intensified since then.
When I was a young girl, I had grown thirsty for knowledge and began to read anything I could get my hands on. Regardless of the information, I found myself spellbound by the words and fascinated by their power. At first, I read children's books, road signs, movie summaries, and even the back of toiletry bottles. I quickly grew bored of the short passages, and by the time I was in the fourth grade, I had moved on to books such as Brian Selznick's The Invention of Hugo Cabret. My fourth-grade teacher, Mrs. Jones, encouraged me to continue reading; I followed her advice and checked out double the number of books I usually had. Reading had been an easy hobby to take an interest in, as I enjoy the creative liberties granted by books. To this day, I prefer the blank mental pages that books and stories provide. Whereas movies illustrate scenes with actors and props, books describe a scene, leaving the details to the readers' imagination. Essentially, books are open-ended, which allows for a variety of interpretations and thus produces a large fan base of people who relate to the material. Additionally, the open-ended quality of books provides readers with different epiphanies when rereading the material- a feature that I fell in love with.
With time, my mother took notice of my passion and became an advocate for my learning journey. While I was in Intermediate School, she would drive me to the library so I could research, take me to Harpers Ferry to learn, introduce me to the museums in Washington D.C, and she eventually enrolled me in programs such as speech therapy and French dialect. Although I was only ten, I remember finding satisfaction in education and research rather than the mundane dollies and games my peers enjoyed. At this point in my life, I had dubbed a cheap spiral notebook my "research book," it would come anywhere I had gone. As mentioned earlier, I would use the library as a research center and the notebook as a mind map. The study sessions in the library were frenzy-like; I would shake with excitement upon discovering new information. I cannot imagine what the librarians thought.
Before middle school, my research was factual based, meaning I sought out historical timelines, religious texts, and maps. When the sixth grade began, my interests and abilities had blossomed, and I began feigning amusement in theories and concepts instead. Additionally, my preference for literature had morphed from poems and fiction to non-fiction and analytical articles. I could not believe the amount of knowledge that one could possess if they only searched for it. Furthermore, it dawned on me that information is power, and words are the mode of power. However, a common saying states that ignorance is bliss, and I found this true. My love for learning made me aware that others do not have the privileges that I have, including the ability to read and write. Unfortunately, I also discovered that many people are systematically kept from a proper education. This newfound truth dumfounded yet influenced me to find gratitude in reading. With reading comes information; with information comes power.
Knowing that I can read, write, and learn tears my eyes. I embrace the ability to learn, and I am more than grateful for the opportunities granted to me through reading. It has molded me mentally and provided me with the power of information. Every man, woman, and child should know how to read and write. Literacy is freedom, and I am proud to be free. I hope every person finds power in a love of learning.