Benefits of Good Reading

Pemaquid Lighthouse, Maine

Do you see the clouds moving in to cover the lighthouse? It makes me think of this quote of St. Ambrose of Milan. St. Ambrose was the Doctor of the Church who converted the great sinner who became St. Augustine.

"He who reads much and understands much receives his fill. He who is full refreshes others. So Scripture says: 'If the clouds are full, they will pour rain upon the earth.'"

Books aren't just for the one who reads them (or the one who writes them). Good books give us beauty and joy and refreshment and illumination and encouragement that we can share with others. 

Let us read, and let us use what we absorb to refresh ourselves and others!