This article appeared in a neighborhood newsletter, MainLineNeighbors.com on 4/11/19.  I thought it was a great idea, so I am passing it one.

Late last fall we planted a Little Free Library in our front yard.  Have you seen the boxes around town?  It’s a wonderful book-sharing program.

We ordered one unfinished: my daughters painted it their favorite blue.  We invited the neighborhood kids to come add colorful thumbprints, so everybody could feel a part of the action.  And then the weather got cold.

Recently, like the splashes of daffodils, little people in bike helmets have been popping up in our yard, the youngest of them crawling up on the rickety bench (need to fix that!), to peek into the box and see what treasures are inside.  I love it.

I read like a fiend as a child.  I remember a time, though, when homework took over and pleasure reading took a backseat.  I feel like I’ve been making my way back to reading-for-fun ever since.  As an old(ish) person, if it’s too late at night, after kitchen cleaning and helping with homework, sometimes even page-turners can’t keep me awake.

My middle-school-aged daughters are about to enter some rigorous required reading years.  I want them to keep books in their lives, but homework is already loading up.

One night last week, my family agreed to get up from the dinner table, ignore dirty dishes and math worksheets, and grab a book each.  We sat quietly together in the living room, reading for 30 minutes.  The girls insist they want to do that again.

Fingers crossed for little reading seeds to sprout up everywhere.

Grab a book!Katie L.