Once upon a time there was a kid who, like most of us, feared examinations. So he prayed to god to give him a magic pen that could help him answer all the questions correctly in any exam.
One day in his dream a fairy came to him. She promised to grant him one wish. Promptly he asked the fairy for a magic pen. The fairy took him to a big palace and told him that there is a magic pen in a chamber deep inside that palace.
“I cannot take you all the way in. You have to pass through seven gates and each one is guarded by a scary ogre.” The fairy told him
He walked to the first gate and as predicted the ogre was there.
“If you want to pass through this gate, you need to answer three questions” The ogre told him in a booming voice.
The ogre asked him the questions and he had no idea about any of them. (The ogre did not allow life lines or dial a friend option).
“If you want to try again, look behind you, there is an almirah full of books, read them and you will get all the answers” the ogre told him
He sat there for days and read all the books and when the ogre asked him questions he was ready with all the answers. This was repeated at all the seven gates and finally after many many days he reached the inner room.
He was excited. He looked around for the treasure ‘the magic pen’. The room looked empty. He was sad and felt cheated. He wanted to hit the fairy who took him for a ride. He started crying. Suddenly the old fairy was with him.
“Why did you let me down?” he screamed
“I have not let you down my boy. You don’t need a magic pen any more. You can take any pen to write the exams. The magic is in your head” The fairy replied softly. She had a little twinkle in her eyes
This story that I read as a little boy left an indelible image in my mind. I believe it is this story that set me up with my first love “BOOKS”. All through the years my love for books has only grown and each one of them has added one more ‘magic’ into my mind.
When I observed the rapid growth of internet and the power of Google, initially I felt that it was time to say good bye to my first love. If I have any questions, the answers are a ‘Google search’ away.
Then I realised that Google has not yet reached the level where it can ask the right questions for me, though it can help me to find the right answer. Not only that, it makes this answer available to anybody, from anywhere in the world at really no cost. The information and knowledge is no more restricted to the privileged few who can afford. But now I need to be even more knowledgeable to know what questions to ask and I need new ideas to make a difference. The ‘written word’ is still one of the few triggers that can help me in this.
Technology has now added more options, I can read e-books and articles from the net, from the kindle, I can review from the net what I want to read, I can get summaries of big fat books that would distil the wisdom for me, my friends and the virtual communities could share their opinion with me on what I intend to read and the audio books help me to fall asleep imbibing the ‘spoken word’ without disturbing my kid or my wife with the reading light.
With all these I have only got closer to my first love these days and not drift away…
“The books that help you the most are those which make you think the most.” Theodore Parker
Note. There are still millions around the world who do not have access to this magic of written words or the access to the net. This is one area in which a small contribution can serve many generations. I have been very impressed by work done by ‘Room to Read’ and I believe this truly is one of the most admirable charities in today’s world.