I was never much into books when I was younger. My mom was a reading maniac, but I guess I could never relate to sitting still and staring down at a story written on paper.
Sure, I do read. But not nearly as regularly or as often as I hoped to.
Also, if I did enter book stores in the past, the books I saw were never able to grab my full attention. Some titles sounded good. But nothing that grabbed me by the core of my being and sucked me in like a rollercoaster adventure ride and spat me out in the end. And to be honest – that´s what I am looking for when reading. A book that keeps me interested, surprises me as I read and just does not let me go until I finished.
Here I was, accompanying my girlfriend to her favourite bookstore. It´s a hidden bookstore. Finding it felt like like Harry Potter entering platform 9 3/4 by jumping through a wall.
Already after entering the store I realised that something about the atmosphere was different than in other book stores. I was walking casually around the store browsing titles, passing along the shelves. It was a couple of minutes into our visit when I started to feel overwhelmed. Each and every book I touched seemed interesting to me. The titles I saw, the authors on the shelve. Everything seemed like it was made for me – or someone like me, with my interests, my goals and perspectives.
The feeling of excitement and connectedness took over.
Do you know that feeling when you are exposed to something or someone and all of the sudden you realise that you had been secretly searching for this item or person with all your being for a very long time? It blends into your existence with ease, like the perfect puzzle piece molding into the bigger picture of yourself.
You feel such relieve for finally having found the missing piece that you are overcome with joy and euphoria.
It´s when you begin to comprehend that you are indeed not crazy. That´s when you feel relief from your soul aching search for meaning and identity. You feel that maybe you can be understood and maybe there is people and things out there – just like you. A state of full connectedness, let´s say. And even if this state just lasts for a couple of seconds, it gives you ease – it soothes your soul and feels like a warm pet on the back from a close friend.
That´s how I felt when I entered the hidden bookstore.
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