(no subject)
I love books.
It used to be that I felt the world was literally at my fingertips, Africa to Mongolia within the span of a single page. It seemed that there would be no reason to leave the library, and happiness could be found hidden in the dusty stacks. I would surround myself with books, reading until my eyes went blurry with fatigue. I lived through countless characters, through countless titles, through countless hours. And to tell the truth, I don't regret the time spent.
But living vicariously is not living at all.
Traveling teaches a lot that can't be learned in books - lessons that although already committed to word and print mean nothing without the experience to sear the wisdom into your life. One can say "the military should be kept insulated from the influences of political ambition" but until you see a war-torn country in shambles because a certain party used the military to force the people into submission, you may not really comprehend the ramifications of the statement. I never did.
Problems I had used to feel big, because my personal world was small by comparison. Life was limited to the going-ons of the hospital, and it seemed that petty things like gossip or an unfair attending could tip the scales of my own sense of peace. But seeing that there is so much more to heaven and earth than lies within my imagination makes me realize that there are things so much more pressing. Strangely, I feel smaller and more autonomous at the same time.