Monday, August 6, 2012

Book Learning


Anything we need to know, we can learn it from a book. Reading, careful study, a little practice, and we’re throwing knives expertly, overhauling engines, speaking Esperanto like natives.
― Richard Bach, The Bridge Across Forever: A True Love Story
I think my dad believed this wholeheartedly and passed this belief on to us. Maybe that's naive but why would I believe anything else with Dad as a model? He learned so much from books--how to build a house, how to garden, build terraces, cook, work on our cars, raise and butcher animals for food, and on and on (living like a pioneer maybe mostly from the Foxfire series). It's too bad that we lived in an area where there wasn't a good library and the Internet wasn't around yet. I've long believed that if you know how to read, you can do anything if you want it badly enough and are willing to work. Thanks, Dad.

What have you learned how to do from a book?
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2 comments:

  1. DianeAugust 22, 2012 at 9:06 AM

    How to care for babies from Dr. Spock (who we all know was wrong about a lot of things!)

    How to clean house properly (not that I do it very well.)

    Mike was learning all about Vietnam and China and Japan prior to his trip that never happened.

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  2. Marty BirdMarch 10, 2022 at 3:53 AM

    I'm told "how do you know how to do that?" and find that I'm not shy about trying new things. I get this from my dad, who - after reading about how to do something - would jump right in. Change the spark plugs on a old Dodge truck? We can do that. Wire up some lighting fixtures in the farrowing pen? We can do that, too.

    So yes, reading is powerful, and one need not be shy about doing things that might be outside your current level of knowledge.

    Within reason, of course. Dad wouldn't read up on "how to set a broken bone" and not take Eric to emergency room.

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