Some of my fondest childhood memories are those snuggled up to my mother while she read bedtime stories to my brother and me.

The simplicity and sanctitude of those memories are like tiny perfect pearls all strung together in a perfect circle of life.

Now that I am a mother, I carry on this nighttime tradition.

There is something wonderful about reading to your child with them nestled close to you, watching intently as you read each word to them.

I’ve found even when my son is in the foulest of moods— crying the blues because he does not want to go to bed— that if I can contain him long enough in the four corners of his bedroom and crack the pages of a book, it will tame the beast roaring inside him.

Slowly, he will begin to pay attention and crawl to my side to listen to the story unfolding from the pages.

I know from my own experience as a child, there is no time you feel safer or more secure than when your parents give you their undivided time to whittle a fantastical tale into your tired mind and tuck you snug into your bed.

That is truly “the stuff” of life.

We all need more of those still moments together. Where you unwind and listen— and love.

I suppose this is how I came to love books and storytelling so much.

Thanks, Mom.

Thanks for taking the time to snuggle and read to us.

Without it, I surely would have been lost.

Quite possibly, I would have been wandering about life unaware of the beauty that lies within books.

The thought makes me cringe.

Yikes!

So, my point is… take the time to read to or with your children. You could be helping to feed a love of words for the world’s next greatest writer.

And without words and writers, where would our world be?

Not a place I want to be.

So, go on now. Start collecting those books for your home library.

And, make memories of a lifetime through the pages of a wonderful bedtime story.

Alison Paul Klakowicz BA, MS

Author of Mommy’s Big, Red Monster Truck

http://www.alisonpaulklakowicz.com

Mother, Milspouse, Writer, Podcaster, Artisan

Alison Paul Klakowicz is a North Carolina native, children’s book author, blogger, podcaster and creative writer. She is a military spouse who resides in Fayetteville, NC with her husband, Adam, and son, Mak.