Love to read? A great video for just you!

Shame on me. I favorited this short animated film over 6 months ago. Oh, well... I wish to take a moment to remind you of why we read. It is NOT to pass an exam. It is NOT to prove competency at an arbitrary level of English. Those are objectives towards an academic goal and are fine for creating "mile markers" of your progress.

Reading serves as the vehicle for so much more beyond the smallish and often false goals that academia proscribe. Reading, and I am talking memorable reading, is the contextualizing of information. Contextualizing in a processable form, or life-relatable series of events. A story! So much has been written about "deep knowledge" and long-term memory. One of the abiding truths that have not changed is that we must store knowledge in a system, that is "human", humanness means "story". If you are having problems with your advancement toward learning goals. It might be time to revisit the "basics". Do not bother trying to memorize lists. Figure out how to experience the information in story. The attached video is using metaphor, that of living books .

Inspired, in equal measures, by Hurricane Katrina, Buster Keaton, The Wizard of Oz, and a love for books, “Morris Lessmore” is a story of people who devote their lives to books and books who return the favor. Morris Lessmore is a poignant, humorous allegory about the curative powers of story. Using a variety of techniques (miniatures, computer animation, 2D animation) award-winning author/ illustrator William Joyce and Co-director Brandon Oldenburg present a new narrative experience that harkens back to silent films and M-G-M Technicolor musicals. “Morris Lessmore” is old-fashioned and cutting edge at the same time.

Take 15 minutes to watch this. I promise that you will find a few "old friends". These friends (stories) will gently tug at your heart-strings. They will also remind you that learning and discovery through story is still magical and worthy of your renewed efforts.

Original blog post can be found here: http://myeslfriends.com/wordpress/2012/02/04/why-we-read/  

Tags: reading, English, story