WHY READING MUST BE ON YOUR NEW YEAR RESOLUTION LIST FOR 2020

At midnight on a recent Sunday, my Australian-based friend Harriet called me and asked of reading list for 2020. The truth is I had not even thought of such a list until Harriet asked. I usually decide on what to read on a monthly basis and that could be the reason for my inability to give a proper answer to Harriet.

It was something else Harriet said that pricked my curiosity though. She wanted me to give her tips on how she could convince her rather busy boyfriend to read. Her boyfriend is a highly educated banking executive who is very good at what he does. Harriet’s worry though is his almost complete aversion for reading anything aside his work brief or books related to his profession. She wanted me to talk to her boyfriend about the ‘beauty’ of reading fiction. I wasn’t sure I had an answer then. I have been thinking about it though. Why do I get from reading novels, poems, or plays? And why should I tell Harriet’s boyfriend or many of his kind to take time out of their busy schedules to read a piece of literature in 2020?

Harriet’s request reminded me of my own debacle with an ex-girlfriend of mine in 2011. I am sure I have told this story to some of you at a certain point. Her name was Petra, she ditched me when I sent her an autographed copy of Ama Ata Aidoo’s ‘Changes’ as her birthday present. I then heeded to the advice of my friend Ekow and bought another book for another ex-girlfriend Francisca in 2013. She didn’t tell me she was leaving me explicitly because of that but I’m certain it did play a role in her final decision. Since then, I have been careful how to navigate the careful balance between my love for reading or books and romantic relationships.

However, I would offer, in my opinion, the best reason why adding reading to your new year resolution in 2020 would go a long way in making your year a memorable one. Reading gave me the opportunity to know the stories of others. It gave me an opportunity to walk in the pain, struggle and joy of the lived experiences of others. It gave me the ability to empathize with people. Reading enabled me to understand numbers better in my field of work. My training in statistics had focused my mind on data and interpretation of the numbers. However, one thing that went largely ignored in my field of social research was to treat numbers as abstractions devoid of any human stories. I came to understand the limit of logic in understanding people through reading.

I believe that every book I read affects my understanding of the world. It broadens my perspectives. Reading helps to humanize our lived experiences. So as we start this new year, I’d encourage all my readers to make a conscious effort to spend some quality time reading a book at least every month or two…