āEvery book I undertake is a journey, and it is a journey made from specific point to specific point. For each of us, each and every day is also a journey.ā ā Julia Cameron
I like Julia Cameronās idea of a book being a journey.
Thereās a component of time-space when we finish reading a story: we are not the same person at the end of it as our memory has been tweaked, and in most cases, weāve learned something. Perhaps that is why itās so important to choose wisely which books to read. Which journeys to undertake.
Journeys can be physical routes, spiritual paths, or creative endeavours. Journeys can also take the shape of time through reading books. The books we read in a year have a powerful influence on our lives, on who weāve become at the end of another lap around the Sun. Or rather, at the next stop. And at the new beginning.
Every journey has the duality of the end of something and the beginning of something else. A call to adventure.
January is always (according to the Gregorian calendar) the beginning of a new year, the set off of a new journey. When I reflect on the books I have read this month, I find a pattern: they are all about living a more authentic and creative life, about starting journeys in a way. Itās also interesting how the books (small journeys on themselves) connect which each other to form a path, a route, a trail.
Back in December, I bought a Kindle Reader, which was a big thing for me as I have always loved reading on paper, but life circumstances (moving to a different country for a while) made it easier to carry all the books I wanted to read and bring with me.
I finished the year and started the month with Big Magic, a book Iāve been wanting to read for a while and found on the Kindle library for a ridiculous price. That one opened up a couple of books on vulnerability and habits I read very quickly. Then I went back to Julia Cameron to find one of her books I havenāt yet read and found The Sound of Paper. This coincided with the last couple of hectic weeks preparing everything to move out of London (more on this in the next post), so I havenāt been able to read much of it (hopefully during one of the 12-hour flights!), but I am trying to read slower and enjoy this little book. (I say little but in reality, I donāt have a sense of scale yet using the Kindle Reader, I only know the remaining percentage of the book and the time it takes to read a chapter.)
With everything that is happening at the moment, for me, January (and February as well) will totally be the beginning of a new journey, a new chapter in my life. A new adventure. When envisioning the next stop a little bit further down the road, I wonder about the books I will read this year and about the things I will learn. And about the things I will see and draw.
If a book is a journey, the constellation of books that we read in a year creates a path, a route, a trail. Letās just follow it :)
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šĀ What Iām reading inĀ January 2023:
Big MagicĀ by Elizabeth Gilbert. I have written a short post on this before.
Daring GreatlyĀ by BrenĆ© Brown. This book was mentioned in Gilbertās Big Magic and after some research decided to give it a try (apparently Brown is quite a popular author in the US).
The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod. Iāve started my year full-on motivated to improve my routines and habits, focused on personal growth. I am a morning person (or a morning monster as my partner says) but thereās plenty of room for improving my mornings and creating the time to create. As I am moving countries and changing my routines and rituals, I hope this will be a book that will help me re-design my mornings.
The Sound of Paper by Julia Cameron. This is a collection of little essays and prompts, a sort of summary of her key lessons to access the creative flow by the author of The Artistās Way. Juliaās books are always great companions.
What are you currently reading? It would be great to hear about it! Please, leave a comment and share your thoughts :)
Very true. A book is a journey with some ending abruptly and some you savor each step of the way. Lately, I've been reading a book on creating your own manifesto to lead your life with as well as Lost Focus by Jonah Haari, a good read on the different ways we are losing our focus because of technology and how to gain it back. You mentioned you read on a Kindle, Jonah actually shared some research on how we interact with physical books vs. digital books differently. Interesting book.
Best of luck with your new journey!