TBP Task 2

Reading is a great hobby to pursue. Reading for enjoyment is a great relaxation technique but a person can also acquire many benefits from reading without even realizing it. Reading helps improve your memory, builds self-esteem and improves conversation skills.
Why read when you can watch the movie or listen to the audio book? Well, reading helps work your brain and like any other muscle in your body the brain needs a good workout too. As you read you are creating neurological pathways within your brain which stimulates memory. Since books are usually not completed within a day your brain has to keep up with a list of characters, backgrounds of the characters, their ambitions, plots and sub plots. We are forced to construct, to produce narrative, to imagine (Wolf, 2007). Sharpened memory is a benefit of this mental activity.
A great way to build a person’s self-esteem is to teach them to read. Being unable to ready can isolate you from those around you and keep you from being able to travel the world in which you live causing low self-esteem. Even young children can be affected by not reading on the same level as a peer. Reading can open doors to greater education and build a person’s intelligence. By educating a person through reading you give them the opportunity to be able to communicate on the same level as their peers. Being able to do this will build their self-worth and take ownership of their lives.
It is awkward to have a lull in any conversation. But by being well read a person can navigate any given situation from a dinner party, a work event or even over the phone. By keeping abreast of current events by reading newspapers or reading a current hot book on the New York best seller list a person will have an arsenal of topics to keep any conversation flowing. Being able to carry the conversation or lead it smoothly will keep people feeling comfortable and that in itself is an art form.
Reading can cause laughter, tears and fears. It can bring a smile to a person’s face. Reading can take you to places that you never dreamed you could go, but during all the emotions and dreams it can also help educate the reader and help make them a better person which in turn can help make the reader’s world a better place.
Works Cited
Wolf, M. &. (2007). Proust and the squid: The story and science of the reading brain. New York, NY: HarperCollins.