My life is very busy right now as a senior, with many deadlines to meet and very little time to accomplish them, I don't have time to read anymore, although I love doing it. And that is why, I think, that every time I get my hands on a good book my heart hurts and I start remembering how life used to be in Ecuador, so tranquil and peaceful, with little deadlines to meet as a kid and lazy summer vacations, with plenty of time to read as many books as I wanted.
I will never forget the image of my grandpa's bedside table; it was never empty. Always heaping with history, religion and politics books. Sometimes I would sneak in and open them to see what was so interesting about it, however, I was too young to understand.
My mom started teaching me the alphabet letters when I was about three years old, because I was hungry for knowledge, always asking what the letters meant and how they were pronounced. One day that I remember is when I was four and read "vaso de leche", which means glass of milk on an ad and told my grandma. That was the first thing I read on my own and since then I haven't stopped.
I started reading everything that I could, my grandpa's books and even his office's books. I would spend entire days submerged in a book and finish it in less than 3 days, depending on the size of the book. I would even eat at the table with a book in front of my face. I got to a point where I had read all of my grandpa's books, but my hunger grew with every book I read. .
I was eight now and I had to do something with that passion I had for reading, so I decided to pass it on to my little sister who was four years old at the time. I started with a white board my uncle had in his room, and taught her how to read with games and pictures I made up. We share books sometimes, I recommend the good ones to her, and she reads them, although she does not like reading as much as I do. .
My experiences with reading have a lot to do with my family as you can see; my family and my reading skills have shaped me into the person I am today and will be tomorrow.
