Use gratitude to increase your fulfillment from books

I love to read. It's been a hobby of mine for as long as I could read. I also have a list of books that I'm planning to read in the future. Yet I often run into a frustrating problem. The problem unfolds like this: I'm really looking forward to reading a book--perhaps for a long time. (Remember my list of future reads.) Then when I get the book, I'm excited. But when I start to read it, it doesn't live up to my expectations. The longer I've been looking forward to reading a book, the more likely this is to happen. In other words, the disappointment that I experience is probably more from myself than from the book. During the time I look forward to reading the book, I pump it full of expectations, setting myself up for a disappointment.

One possible solution to this would be to stop having a list of books to read in the future. Every time you want to start a book, just find a book that strikes your fancy. I don't think this is a feasible solution for me though, because I'm a systematic reader. I like to finish most books I start and I like to not read too many books at a time. Also, there are many books I want to read. The list is a good thing for me.

The solution that I've decided on revolves around the idea of gratitude. I think when I pick up a book to start it, I need to start by being thankful for the book. This may sound strange, but I almost want to talk to the book, saying something like this, "Thank you for coming to me. I appreciate you for who you are. I release my expectations of you and let you be who you are. I look forward to spending time with you." Like I said, this is a strange thing to say to a book, but in a way, a book is an embodiment of the author of the book, so you can also think of yourself as saying that to the author.

Marie Kondo is a Japanese author who writes about staying organized. (See her book, "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up.") She also writes about speaking to objects, as well as thanking them--which she does before she gets rid of any object. So I think my idea of thanking a book definitely pays a debt to her, and I'll end this post in this way, "Thanks, Marie, for your book, and for giving me ideas that came back to me in a new way."