Los Libros

Lately I've been reading a lot. I know many FSOs and world travelers who gorge themselves on a ton of books (or internet sites or whatever) about their future assignment from the moment that they discover that they're going to a new place in order to learn every single thing that they can before going. These people probably are very much more prepared to live and navigate the culture that they're about to enter. My motives for reading are a bit more escapist in nature. Though I'm learning and trying to remember all the lessons that a new diplomat needs to be sent out into the world, in the quiet of evening I try to decompress and turn to the content of my bookshelves. There are always a few travelogues or Lonely Planet guides... but far more numerous are books from genres only tangentially related to travel. You're far more likely to see me reading a classic (or maybe not so classic) science fiction or fantasy novel than a book exploring the political culture of country X,Y, or Z.  My audiobook queue is filled with David McCullough books on the history of great American people or their works. 

The thing about these genres (history, science fiction, fantasy) is that they make you think. Science fiction and fantasy are all about the counterfactuals. What if the world or the laws of nature were different? What will the world or galaxy or universe be in 10, 50, 100, or 1000 years? Really they're both genres on a continuum that goes from plausible to extraordinary. Meanwhile, histories force us to examine and reexamine the meaning of our culture and worldview. In looking to the past, we hope to gain some insight for future paths. As a great philosopher once said (somewhat ironically echoing the sayings of older philosphers) "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." 

Which brings us back to books. I've lately had some rather broad discussions with the spouse and others on the utility of paper books. I understand the portability factor of e-readers and the interactive interface that makes looking up a word (foreign or otherwise) with the touch of a finger. And I admit to using my tiny little iphone more and more for quick web browsing. But it's going to be a long and painful process for me to abandon the printed word. I feel a tremendous feeling of awe and anticipation when I open a book for the first time. There're so many possibilities that could be contained within it. And from a very early age I was taught that the library is a sacred space for our civilization. 

So I will continue to read, and continue to learn, and continue to think about the what ifs of this world. It's my way of preventing calcification and cynicism. And this messed up world could use a little optimism and what ifs, I think.