what I am reading

well one would think that I don't have too much time for reading, and that would be an accurate thought over the last few weeks, however, reading is a very good way on winding down and ending the day.

...sooo, when we are ready to head to bed, which is usually quite lateish  - either side of midnightish - Rowing Man and I head off to bed with a cup of tea, he with the daily paper complete with the diversions page or his latest PC World mag - (yep we are avid code-crackers and sudoku fans), and me with my book, flannels (yer - very romantic - NOT) and my hottie (hot water bottle that is). Wonderful way to unwind at the end of a very busy day.

My sister is an avid ... and I mean really AVID buyer of books, she just simply cannot go past a bookstore ever! SO I don't need a library, we have our own "book-club" where we pass along the books my sister buys.

So I am reading "before i die" by Jenny Downham. Not a particularly well written novel, or very riveting, but it has relatively big writing and I am reading it rather quickly. BUT, there is some poignancy & sadness, tinged with a bit of reality, that this story is happening to so many people around the world.

"before i die" is the story about a young 16yr old girl who is dying of cancer, and has a list of things to do before she dies. Yep, it's been written about many times before, and Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman starred in a brilliant comedy movie, BUT there is something different about this novel, that is raw and unpolished, and REAL.

Everyone has to die, we all know that. And as I said, this young 16yr old has a list -ten things to do before she dies (and I have to say as a parent, these are not all things that you would want on your 16yr old's list of anything really)

But getting what you want isn't easy, as this young lass  finds out - even if you are dying. And getting what you want doesn't always give you what you need, and just sometimes, the  most unexpected things become very important.

Uplifting, life-affirming, joyous, hmm not sure I would use those words exactly, certainly it is not an extraordinary novel, but, it does celebrate what it is to be alive by confronting what it is like to die.

I have enjoyed - no I have hmmm, cannot think what I have accomplished reading this, but every now and then it is necessary to read something that takes you out of your usual comfort zone. I can't say that I have enjoyed this book, but it's poignancy has made me think a bit more about life, and what is important, and how important family and friends are to us. 

Don't sweat the small stuff, don't make mountains out of molehills, and enjoy the journey!