52 Months

So, apparently by ensconcing Lucas in a world of books we have guided him into the wonderful world of reading. We often find him sitting alone checking out one of his favorite stories. Both Xtimu and I were avid readers when we were younger, mostly because each of us had a great desire to escape from our lives. Now, hopefully that isn't the main reason Lucas loves reading so much and eventually I only want him to find a healthy balance between escapism and reality, our attitude toward the type of environment our children will inhabit always seems to resemble a library.

Many times a day Lucas will very politely ask if you would like to read a book with him. It's one of his favorite activities and most of the time we indulge him. Reading aloud has been a new experience for me and at first I couldn't grock the cadence required of the task. The sound inside your head is always different than what actually comes out. But now that I've had four years to practice, I've really come to enjoy sharing a story to the world with my voice and as a writer myself, who may be required to read before an audience in the future, it makes for great training.

Lately we've been expanding our repertoire. A few months ago we found the book, The Hobbit, at Xtimu's parents house and on a whim I started reading it to him. It was very easy to read and he actually seemed to be interested in the story. I remember trying to read this novel as young teen and being completely flustered by it. It seemed very complicated and intricately written but now, as I began to read it to my son, the words were flowing like water over river rocks. We read a few pages then put the book down and I figured that would be the end of it, but Lucas had other ideas. He began to ask me about the Hobbit and Bilbo Baggins and suggested that we continue to read the fantastic tale. After taking a moment to think about if it was appropriate for a four-year-old, I decided that it might be interesting to read an entire novel aloud to my son.

Well, now we are over halfway finished with the book and Lucas absolutely loves it. There have been a few moments (just try to describe trolls and goblins and gollum without scaring the crap out of a child) but we've yet to have a terrified boy waking in the middle of the night from wicked dreams. He's really adapted to the tenor of the book and has fully become engrossed in the characters and story. He tells others about Bilbo Baggins or Gandalf and constantly asks me questions about the Lonely Mountain or the dwarves. It's all super cool and I'm excited about this new adventure we've undertaken, even contemplating what we should read next. Although Lucas often tells me during our time together that when we finish the book, he wants to start over and read it again!

Another aspect of the book that Lucas totally digs is the map Tolkien inserted at the beginning of the book. Lucas often wants to check the map to see exactly how far they've come in their quest. I try to imagine the world that he sees inside his brain and the wonder of it must be amazing. Children's brains are so massive, the stuff they can think of and store for a rainy day, and this adventure that we're following must bring a fantastic cacophony of sights and sounds into it. Xtimu and I just decided that we need to get a globe for him and Quinn. Becoming aware of the grand scale of the world that we inhabit is an important aspect of growing and since Lucas is so eager to learn about it, we may as well indulge him.

As a father, I never imagined how certain behaviors or experiences would really touch me and the beauty in sharing a moment with your child can't truly be described. I hope that as Lucas grows, we can share many moments like those we are having reading The Hobbit. The amazing part of intimacy is in the way that we communicate so serenely. To eliminate the barriers that rise up between us and be honestly open to the awe of another human being is incredibly special and creates a sense of joy. That's why we get married, have children, seek out the companionship of others, develop civilization. That's why humanity has thrived. It's not a ruthless spirit that's enterprising but a jubilant one that keeps us going.