AI generated picture of an elderly man reading a book to children
Reader's Unite!

Life changes as quickly as the second hand of a clock.
You had better get used to it. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
Nothing stays the same.
You can’t go back. That past has changed.

The key, and maybe it’s the only one you need,
It is to know what’s going on around you.
You cannot stay in the wrong lane forever.
All roads end somewhere. Merge with the masses?

No way!

This past month, I’ve read articles about fear.

Cars driving themselves – who makes the final determination of choice?
Are writers even needed? People are focused on screens rather than books.
The information superhighway (remember that term?) is blazing faster.
Pictures and videos are highly edited to show perception and never reality.

Imagine the variety at our fingertips and to our senses.
In 10 minutes, you can peruse the world,
Before settling on something to focus on.
Grow tired of it and let the second flicker. You change.

Remember this. This is crucial. You do change.
Enticement causes you to flicker between all those pretty baubles.
The internet is constantly deciphering what others want you to see.
And they change their algorithm to keep you glued to the screen.

I’ll confess. I don’t adapt well.
I’ve grown weary of the internet and social media.

My news apps keep telling me the same thing.
Only they find new ways to get you to click!
The meat of the story is hidden in advertisements.
Click on an advert, and someone just paid someone money!
Meanwhile, you must find the button to click to keep reading.

Oh, the sad state of affairs is easily stated.
They want me to “watch” and “listen.”
Wait! I read faster than you speak! Don’t torture me!
It may be a matter of trust, but I want to read it for myself!

Headlines never tell you the meat. They want you to click.
Click on a story, and still, you cannot find the meat.
Don’t click there! It’ll take you somewhere else!
Then, you find they want you to watch the story instead of reading it!
Not me! I exit! Why? I want to read.

How many times have you listened to what others are watching?
Their eyes are glued to a 3×4 screen, and their speakers are turned loud.
Unless someone intervenes, everyone is blasting their distraction.
And that distraction cannot easily be undone.

Watcher? Listener? Stop It…
I’m a reader in a watching/listening world
.
Something is quieting about letting my mind provide the soundtrack.
There’s something creative about letting my mind build the scene of words.

As the words change before me, they unveil the news or story,
My mind quickly changes the scenery and soundtrack.
That’s my adaptation…
And I can imagine it better that you can create it!

So, the answer is NO! I don’t have to adapt.

Reader's, Unite! There's something special about using your ability to read, decipher, consider, think, and even imagine something independently instead of someone else programming the image on a screen. Your personal creation changes… Share on X

Nehemiah 8:1-8 NKJV

[There was a time when few books existed,
and perhaps many could not read,
so a sharing of the written word was presented to all in a public setting.]

Now all the people gathered together as one man
in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate;
and they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses,
which the LORD had commanded Israel.
So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men and women
and all who could hear with understanding
on the first day of the seventh month.
Then he read from it in the open square
that was in front of the Water Gate
from morning until midday,
before the men and women
and those who could understand;
and the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law.
So Ezra the scribe stood on a platform of wood which they had made for the purpose;
and beside him,
at his right hand,
stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Urijah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah;
and at his left hand
Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbadana, Zechariah, and Meshullam.
And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people,
for he was standing above all the people;
and when he opened it,
all the people stood up.
And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God.
Then all the people answered, “Amen, Amen!”
while lifting up their hands.
And they bowed their heads
and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.
Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub,
Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah,
Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites,
helped the people to understand the Law;
and the people stood in their place.
So they read distinctly from the book,
in the Law of God;
and they gave the sense,
and helped them to understand the reading.
(Nehemiah 8:1-8 NKJV)

Thought: Are we reverent enough when we read God’s Book?

It was a blessing to hear the Book of the Law of Moses read,
so they stood in honor of the reading,
The prophet Blessed the Lord, and the people agreed (amen)
and worshipped with hands lifted and heads bowed,
and they stood and were attentive.

Thank you for reading.
Please share with others.
It helps me get my book written!

(Below, you may find other topics similar to this one. Please read on!)

By Michael Gurley

Making Sense of Life, One Thought at a Time!