I have no hobbies in particular, but one thing I adore is reading. When I am engrossed in a book, my everyday worries slip aside, and I feel as if the threads of my life are untangled.
The Japanese Herald that a friend sends me regularly often gives me such moments. Not being a Christian Scientist (I am a Buddhist), the Herald, at first, seemed a little foreign to me. But one day, when reading the Herald, I was struck by the beauty of a sentence. It cleared my thinking, giving it pristine order. The article (Takashi Oka, "Expand your creativity by expanding your concept of God," The Herald of Christian Science [Japanese edition], July-September 2000) had such clarity. It was easy to understand, yet was also imbued with deep insights. It was extremely logical, but still very warm. I am a writer, and the article had such an impact on me that I kept reading it over and over, and each time before I started to write.
It does not seem possible to change habits or thinking patterns overnight, but I feel that the Herald is drawing me in that direction. Some portions of the magazine are too difficult for me to understand, but whenever I read the Herald, I feel the mist lifting before my eyes. And I keep reading, because I want to experience more of how I feel when I read the Herald.
