GARVIN: Fast-track lives prevent reading for pleasure, relaxing

I miss reading.

That's not to say that I don't read. I'm a sophomore in college; I wouldn't still be here if I didn't read every week for my classes.

I miss reading for fun.

This realization sunk in when my friend Shasta sent me a link to a Web site with tons of holidays, and I discovered that this week is Tolkien Week. I grew up reading and rereading "The Hobbit," "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy and "The Silmarillion."

As a child, I devoured every book I got my hands on. Reading let me escape and taught me more than most of my school classes. I loved it. Every now and then, my parents actually grounded me from books, like most children are grounded from TV, because I wouldn't do my chores if I was in the middle of tales from Middle Earth.

As a result, I got really good at speed reading. I would huddle in my closet trying to get through as much of the story as I could before my mom came in, took the book away and told me to make my bed. Or I would hide beneath my covers with a flashlight trying to squeeze in one more adventurous chapter before my dad came in and told me to go to bed.

Now, as I attempt to be a responsible adult, I don't let myself pick up books to read for pleasure because I know I don't have time for them.

I'm not the only one. Teachers assign hundreds of pages of reading every week and expect us to find time to cram it in. Add other responsibilities, like a job or volunteer work, and time for leisurely activities such as sitting down for four to five hours to lose yourself in a novel, disappears quickly.

We dedicate what reading time we have to assigned reading, and with such large amounts to study, we learn to speed read, to skim, to highlight or underline the parts we'll be tested over and forget the rest. This says to students that reading is a chore, something that you stay up until 2 a.m. doing because you have to, not because you want to. Even if you do get a reading assignment you enjoy, you have a deadline that it has to be done by, so you have to rush through it without savoring it.

I find this sad.

We need to take time for ourselves, to relax and recharge. Now, I am not saying we can do that all the time. We can't hide in our closets, ignoring our chores like I tried to as a child. But we do need to have a healthy dose of fun time. This fits in with another holiday listed on the Web site Shasta sent me: Balance Awareness Week.

This week is not only one for celebrating Tolkien; we are also supposed to analyze our lives, make sure we aren't spreading ourselves like too little butter over too much bread (And yes, that is a Tolkien saying.)

Now, I know a few lucky people who have everything perfectly balanced in their lives, but most of us don't.

I, for one, am horrible at balancing my life. Along with school, I work one job between classes and another after. If I do decide to cram in something fun, such as going out to eat with friends or going dancing at a club, into my schedule, I usually stay too long and tip the balance of my life too far in the opposite direction.

I overcommit myself and then find the spare time by missing meals and losing sleep. I keep myself awake by chugging Diet Coke. One thing I'm learning slowly is that caffeine can't replace a good night of sleep. You'll be happier if you squeeze in a few Zs rather than pumping stimulants through your veins. Those energy drinks may be your friend one night, but after prolonged use, they don't work as well, and your body is still exhausted.

And when we have to invent alcoholic energy drinks, you know something is seriously wrong with the way we are living. Seriously. Isn't the point of going out for a drink to unwind? When you don't even have enough energy to relax, it's kind of scary.

For years, especially in high school, I was convinced I could do everything. I was told that I needed to have tons of extracurriculars, lots of hard classes, hours upon hours of volunteer work and healthy social skills if I wanted to get a decent scholarship. We are constantly told that we must do more, more, MORE if we want to be competitive in the workplace, in school, everywhere. But why? Do we really need to do that much?

I think the answer is to pick and choose what is most important and then do that. We should ask ourselves questions like: Do I really need that hour of Adult Swim when I could be sleeping? Can I budget my money better so that I only have to work one job instead of two? Do I really need to be involved in a lot of clubs that I only half care about? And can I skip hanging out tonight so I can get my homework done and have more time to hang out this weekend?

It's still hard for me to come to terms with the fact that I can't do everything, but I need to take care of my health, both physically and mentally. I need to find time to read a book. I'm way past due for a vacation to the Shire.

Heidi Garvin is sophomore Political Science and News Editorial major. Reach her at heidigarvin@dailynebraskan.com.