Dobby-struck

I am not a huge Harry Potter fan, but I just could not get enough of Dobby in the movie! He was such an adorable, brave, kind-hearted elf... I want to hug him!! Haha :)

(Too bad he won't be there in the second part.)

I have forgotten how much I loved to read books.

For the past few months, I have been too occupied with business-related things: finance classes and running my small business. Most of the time I would either be solving mathematical equations, calculating this and that, emailing or texting clients. Thinking about it, I find it very ironic that I am very much involved in these matters now. Two years ago, I would have rolled my eyes even just upon hearing the word "business."

I have a tendency to get really caught up with whatever workload I have. I can simply run on autopilot: to keep working without feeling or even thinking that my body gets tired. That is why last week, my body protested with all its might, demanding for a break. I constantly felt nauseous, feverish and weak. My eyes felt so strained and so dry. My hands got shaky, yet I was still pretty stubborn despite my condition. I forced myself to go to class, to take the quizzes, to study for them, to take notes and to listen intently. However, I could only do so much. Not long, I did not have much choice but to actually give myself a break. It was only then that I once again lay down on my bed thinking of nothing. (For the past few months, I still pondered and thought about different matters even in my sleep.)

From that point on, I became more gentle with the way I treat myself. I started asking myself what she wants to do today, how is she feeling.... questions that I would usually ask the people I care for.

Today, after reading through my finance book, I realized I was thirsty to read other books --- books that do not talk about business, for a change. And so I picked Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert on my bookshelf and started reading it. I actually felt my heart smiling as I did this.

Book-thirsty (if you could call it that), I also headed to the library, went to the Philosophy & Religion section (my favorite part of the library), and scanned through the books on the bookshelf. Oh, how I love the smell of old and new books! I felt like I was breathing in fresh air from the mountains, despite being in the center of a polluted city. In the end, I borrowed Introduction to Buddhism by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso and Mantras: Words of Power by Swami Sivananda Radha.

I sat on one of the benches in the university hallway during the late afternoon, with books on my lap. With one book in hand, I engulfed myself in the world the author opened up for the readers. I sat there, completely relaxed, and thought, "man, I have been missing out on a lot of good stuff. It is time to catch up."