The door opened quietly, and my daughter stepped into the room.
"Mom, I have a question."
Uh oh. That usually meant she needed money to buy something, or she was cooking up another adventure. Those adventures are always quite grand. Can I drive to the North Shore to watch the sunset all by myself? Can I go to New York City (in the middle of a pandemic)?
I looked up slowly and sighed; she could tell I was skeptical.
"This is the best question I've asked in a long time. You're going to love it."
I waited. She was looking for a change in my expression. With my eyebrows raised, I nodded my head to signal she should continue.
"Will you take me to Barnes and Noble to buy me some books?"
She had me at Barnes and Noble. My eyes opened wide in surprise. She plowed on to explain that she and a friend decided they need to read more books.
Uh, no kidding was what I wanted to say, but I refrained.
It breaks my heart that my daughter does not like to read. She only reads when a teacher tells her to read, never for pleasure.
Whatever the motive, I was in.
"Of course I will!" I replied as my heart sang. I started listing off books she would like, such as Mindhunter, Lilac Girls, and The Nightingale. She enjoys true crime and reading about World War II, just like me.
This new plan also explained why she ordered a book through Amazon the other day. A book of poetry. I started thinking about a few to share from my collection. I can't wait to create a stack of books for her to read, so I started with a few from my bookshelves.
My hope is renewed. I hope I can entice my daughter into the world of reading!
In the back of my head, I hope it also means I will have a reading companion, for I can think of nothing better than ending my day reading next to my daughter.
I am participating in Two Writing Teachers' Slice of Life Weekly Challenge.
