Storytelling plays a big role in the process of development
and is not something that belongs in childhood, only to be left behind as we
grow up. As we tell stories about the
lives of others, we learn how to imagine what another creature might feel in
response to various events. At the same time, we identify with the other
creature and learn something about ourselves. As we grow older, we encounter
more and more complex stories — in literature, film, visual art, music — that give
us a richer and more subtle grasp of human emotions and of our own inner world.
The stories we read offer us the opportunity to think what the stories mean to
our own lives; the best of literature speaks to what a human being was and
could be. To read is to build a self.
One of the best pieces of advice I ever received— You have to
live with your mind your whole life, therefore, understand the value of
building it, make it worthy.”
