Joy can be a complicated thing in the age of the internet. It seems easier than ever to enjoy doing something without it giving you much in return.
As winter break approaches, it is worth prioritizing some of the pleasurable things that have been slightly distorted by college, reading chief among them.
The way many students read — hunched in Davis Library over a laptop, fiddling with a pen or their hair, hurriedly trying to get through the text and move on to the next thing — does not seem natural.
Few students seem to read for pleasure because of time constraints or lack of interest. And as other media becomes more artistic and fulfilling, it can be easy not to pick up a book this winter break in your free time.
But during this time, it is good to reset what it means to read a book for oneself.
The act of making a reading list itself can be fulfilling — looking through book reviews (The New York Review of Books), asking professors what they recommend, talking to friends and reading together. These are all things that engage us with a broader world and also with those around us.
We are not your 7th grade teachers or your parents. You should do whatever brings you happiness, relaxation and joy over winter break.
But, for many of us, it is reading and it is worth remembering that.
