Reading Allows Us To Live A Thousand Lives
Through reading I travel and change. Books allow me to live a thousand lives and learn from each one of them. I can be an explorer, an elephant, a gazelle, a doll, a mountain or a star.
In the 1930s, two Asturians established in Cuba created a cigarette company. The workers who made the cigars had a long working day, and to pass the time an employee would read them novels.
Their favorite novel was “O Conde de Monte Cristo” by Alexandre Dumas, which made workers increase the productivity and quality of cigars. So, they decided to call these cigars “Monte Cristo”.
This simple story teaches us that reading gives us wings, stimulates our imagination and allows us to live other lives, dream of places we don’t know, feel different emotions, love people we’ve never seen.
The benefits of reading
When we read, not only can we identify with the different characters in the books, but we can also learn about places, cultures and customs that we don’t know. This will allow us to have a greater understanding of our environment and the people around us.
Next, we will look at some of the benefits of reading, such as increasing empathy, creativity, memory, fighting Alzheimer’s or stress, developing intelligence or the ability to speak and listen.
Reading makes you a more empathetic person
In 2013, scientists at Emory University compared the brains of readers and non-readers. They found that readers use their imaginations to understand the emotions of the characters in the books they read and are therefore generally more empathetic.
Reading increases the ability to understand how other people feel. This empathy results in a fundamental skill for development in different areas: friendships, family, relationships and the ability to work.
The habit of reading improves memory
Different studies have concluded that the lack of memory usage is one of the causes of its loss. For this reason, we recommend some activities such as crosswords, sudoku and reading, to keep the mind circuits that are responsible for memory lubricated.
Reading helps us remember the events that occur, the situation of people, the conflicts we know through books and the lives of the characters that the author shows in each book or text. This way of remembering strengthens our intelligence.
Reading helps reduce stress
Based on studies conducted by Dr. Lewis Davis, reading reduces stress levels by 68% and relaxes us by decreasing our heart rate. Just six minutes of reading a day is enough to significantly reduce stress.
When we read our mind transports us to another place. So if we have a bad day at work, for example, reading will help us relax. We disconnect from problems and manage to enjoy a good time without thinking about anything else.
Reading Reduces the Risk of Alzheimer’s
Regarding memory loss, we find Alzheimer’s disease. Several researches have shown that reading is a good tool to reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, as it stimulates brain function, connection and the increase of brain circuits.
In 2001 several researchers demonstrated that older people who read or perform mental exercises regularly are less likely to develop this disease. So practice this simple habit every day and put your brain to exercise.
You will learn to be a better speaker and writer
Reading allows us to be better speakers, because through reading we can acquire a good vocabulary and learn new words. This learning will help us to write better and speak more fluently, using the language for what we want to express.
A person who reads not only has lived several lives through the characters in the stories he has read, but also has many things to talk about, a great ability to listen to each other, and to watch the world carefully.
You will enjoy and live many lives
With reading you can enjoy an adventurous life in the Amazon, a king in an imaginary country or an orangutan in the jungle. Every page will flood your soul, allowing you to appreciate every situation as you read. Reading is a pleasure, not expensive and very affordable.
Furthermore, you will not only live lives in the present, but also past or future ones. A book allows us to travel back in time and know what our ancestors were like, or ramble on about what we will be like in the future. Reading is daydreaming and opening your eyes to thousands of different realities.
