Unscrolling Life

Recently, at a nearby mall, I saw a scene that genuinely encouraged me. For a moment, I wondered whether a quiet transformation was around the corner. Children and young families were picking up piles of books at a book sale. Some children skipped from shelf to shelf with their hands full, while parents hurried after them, trying to keep up. The sale was lively and tempting, but I somehow managed to restrain myself and stay away. 

Was this a revival of reading habits, or just a one-off event? And none of them had screens in their hands! 

A few days later, while speaking with some young families about education, I noticed another emerging urban trend: parents moving children away from regular schools and toward homeschooling. Many seemed to be looking for alternatives to an education system they increasingly see as “NEETified,” leak-prone - or “leakified” (Leaked examinations – a common occurrence in our nation) -  and narrowly career-driven.

 

Those conversations highlighted another trend: there are families who are exploring if children could be homeschooled through 12th grade and then encouraged to develop their own skills and abilities, with support to find their place in the world rather than simply chase formal education. The view was that degrees matter less than skills, knowledge, talent, and the ability to contribute meaningfully.

 

The latter two depend on experiential learning, wider reading and learning, and limited use of technology, with digital tools serving only as enablers of self-learning.

A recent discussion about the future of a rural school in a tribal area raised an important and similar question from senior administrators: should the school follow the “NEETified” route of standard accreditation, or should it explore alternative education? With a strong library to support wider reading and learning, the alternative path could be less expensive than accreditation and, hopefully, less “leakified.” But better? 

The common point of discussion was - we need to encourage reading. If we can raise a generation that reads - and enjoys reading more than we do - we may have a brighter future as a nation, and perhaps as a world. Instead of following the broad roads of career paths and life around screens.

But why should we inspire the next generation to enjoy reading, and how might we do it? Here are a few thoughts from my own journey.

 

When my brain is overloaded with WhatsApp forwards, it feels as if Brain stands on a chair, waves a book, and shouts, “Feed me something other than useless forwards!” Why does the brain do that?

Reading restores dopamine, endorphins, and oxytocin, so a brain deprived of that stimulation is telling us, “Read, or I will sulk.” In other words, it is saying, “I don’t care how you learn - just please learn something,  but not from WhatsApp University”.  This screen is not stimulating my brain the right way :( 

For me, that craving often calls for light-hearted humour, so I usually respond by reading comics.

 

Then there are the hippocampus and amygdala, which need to be stretched by imagination and fantasy. They seem to say, “Feed me stories that let me imagine.” So I end up reading books like The Lord of the Rings, Keeper of the Lost Cities, or something similar.

Of course, fantasies and comics alone will not help us progress in life, especially on the professional and knowledge side. That is when the prefrontal cortex enters the chat and gently whispers, “Grow up.” Which means I need to read books related to my profession, and in areas where I need to grow.

 

Then comes the cerebrum - demanding broader interests. What we read for work does not always bring fulfilment. With the world changing so quickly, unless we stimulate the whole brain, much of the brain may feel ignored - except, perhaps, the dutiful prefrontal parts.

 

But then we need to shape not just the brain, but the soul too. We need books that stretch the soul and spirit, so that we can become better human beings. 

 

So, brain stimulation is the way forward. Not education as it is done these days. 

Brain stimulation leading to a generation that love books. Re-stimulating the suppressed parts of brain, suppressed by a 'screenified life'

The problem with such a life is that it can quickly move from “discovering books” to “hoarding books” - and then to hoarding without reading.  But a simple problem to sort out. Just keep giving books away! Screens will get some rest too.

 

So, in short: read widely, laugh often, think deeply, and please, for the brain’s sake, read. And for the soul’s sake, read some more. The problem, of course, is that such a journey may create misfits - “cockroaches,” as the world sometimes calls them. Maybe that is exactly what tomorrow’s world needs.

But do not replace people with books :) 

 

(NEET – The equivalent to entrance examinations in any nation. Those who do not understand cockroaches - please visit Indian media sites :))