Abraham Lincoln was born 213 years ago today. He was a man that knew the power of books. I like this quote from him.
“Books serve to show a man that those original thoughts of his aren’t very new at all.”
Abraham Lincoln Quotes. BrainyQuote.com, BrainyMedia Inc, 2022. https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/abraham_lincoln_100002, accessed February 12, 2022.
Abraham Lincoln
Lincoln was a man that valued books so much, he would walk for miles across the Indiana countryside to borrow and return them. Though his formal education was spotty, his love for reading gave him an education far beyond his backwoods upbringing.
Information in the Echo Chamber
In today’s connected world, we have no problem finding information. Rather, our challenge is sifting the wheat from the chaff. Our temptation is to only find the information we agree with, instead of a bit of knowledge that challenges us.
In Lincoln’s time, books showed that original ideas weren’t all that original. In today’s world, we can find any information to justify our thoughts. It doesn’t have to be edited or traditionally published to go out to millions. Do we forget what incredible power exists on our phones and desktops?
We like the comfort of the echo chamber. Most of us cringe when we find information that doesn’t agree with our worldview. However, do we grow if we only read, hear or view what we agree with? Are we doing ourselves a disservice when we don’t challenge our thoughts?
The Value of Printed Books
Today, printed books are still important partly because it still takes effort to publish something on paper. It gives it a physical presence that electronic media doesn’t have. Sure, we can print a blog or social media post. But how many of us actually do that? (If you dare to challenge me and print out this blog post, I’m fine with that!)
There may be a day I take my blog posts and organize them into a book. When that happens, there will be a better chance a future generation will read what I wrote. But if it stays only on the Internet, would it still live on? If I pass on tomorrow and no one chooses to pay for this site, it could disappear like a vapor.
Books and Thoughts
Books are still valuable to educate, instruct and challenge us. Let’s get out of our echo chamber, crack open a good tome, and get acquainted again with the power of books.
