My parents always like to tell me that when I was a tike, I was smart enough to teach myself to read.  I don't know how someone 'teaches themself', but they stand by their story.  I always had a hard time believing it, especially when literature and English classes were never my strengths in school.  When I was in fourth grade, I was kept after school many days because I had no idea how to read for comprehension.  Essentially, I would read a story, understand what I was reading, but not be able to answer questions on it, because they were just words to me.

After this, I never really picked up a book to read, unless it was a do-or-die situation.  I even cheated off of the 'dumb kid' on tests because I didn't read the required books in fifth grade.  I even faked sickness for weeks on end in sixth grade, to avoid Mr. Gibbons and his reading classes.

With that being said, since we've left, I've had a LOT of time to kill.  You can't spend every minute on a tour, exploring another city, shopping in another town.  It burns you out.  And when theres one computer for two people, with one of those people doing projects (hint: not me!), that leaves me to sit and stare at the wall in our room quite a bit.  So, like most travelers, I took to find a new hobby, one that I could never discover back home.  Mine has become reading books.

I set off with a pretty rational goal of reading a dozen books before we left.  Knowing myself, I expected them to be max-200 page books.  As of today, it's March 25th, and we've been gone for 5 full months, and I'm happy to say that I've finished 18 books!  I've gotten into John Grisham, Tom Clancy, Dan Brown, Michael Chrichton, J.K. Rowling (3 down, 4 to go!), and am currently reading Tolkien's Lord of the Rings.

I didn't set out to write this blog as a means to brag though.  It's to bring to light a song from Tolkien's first Lord of the Rings book, The Fellowship of the Ring.  It's extremely fitting to our journey, our world adventure.  Because when the Hobbits leave the shire, they have questions about why they decided to leave the comforts of home.  When Frodo broke out this song, I smiled, and realized that I had to share it with everyone back home.  Read it, and it will bring you a little closer to us in our travels!

Upon the hearth the fire is red,
Beneath the roof there is a bed;
But not yet weary are our feet,
Still around the corner we may meet
A sudden standing stone
That none have seen but we alone.
Tree and flower and leaf and grass,
Let them pass! Let them pass!
Hill and water under sky,
Pass them by! Pass them by!

Still around the corner there may wait
A new road or a secret gate,
And though we pass them by today,
Tomorrow we may come this way
And take the hidden paths that run,
Towards the Moon or to the Sun.
Apple, thorn and nut and sloe
Let them go! Let them go!
Sand and stone and pool and dell,
Fare you well! Fare you well!

Home is behind, the world ahead,
And there are many paths to tread
Through shadows to the edge of night,
Until the stars are all alight.
Then world behind and home ahead,
We'll wander back to home and bed.
Mist and twilight, cloud and shade,
Away shall fade! Away shall fade!
Fire and lamp, and meat and bread,
And to bed! And then to bed!