No Time For Reading

It's a shame, really, that people no longer have time to read. Albeit I'll be focusing mainly on books, I could expand this post to include other things as well like magazines. In today's hurried and hectic work schedule and general pace of life, people have let reading fall by the way side.
Now I understand that there are responsibilities we all have such as: children, meals to cook, work, school...etc. But reading doesn't have to just be for pleasure, it can be beneficial to so many aspects of our lives.
Being a writer, perhaps I make this argument because of how beneficial it is to me. Or perhaps to someone reading this, my point of view on the argument isn't viable to others. But one of the major benefits of reading in general for me would be an expanded vocabulary. Granted, I love words to such a level that I'm constantly looking them up, playing Scrabble and doing word searches! But having a good vocabulary can enhance a person's life in so many ways. Now you may argue that you can achieve such a thing in other ways besides reading, and you'd be right. But that's not all reading benefits.
Reading can also help us gain an understanding of the world around us. Take Reader's Digest for example. Granted that not everyone subscribes to it, but within that small magazine is contained a labyrinth of information about the world around us and important issues going on.
Talking about books now. I recently finished a very good book I found at a local bookstore I frequent, and passed it on to my Mom to read. At first she was optimistic and got through the first few chapters, but then after a while she stopped and hasn't picked it up since. Obviously, back tracking to my list of life's responsibilities, she had other things to do than read. But I have come to understand it's just one of those things that hasn't been instilled in future generations. Reading has gone the way of the CD player, and CD's in general.
Take my brother for example. We are polar opposites in the way that I love to read, and he can't stand reading anything that doesn't resemble a car manual. For his 11th grade U.S History class he has to read Huck Finn. Let me be honest by telling you all I didn't like that book, but because I love reading (and it was required) I read it anyway. Every time I pick up a book I see it as an escape from the sometimes tumultuous and often monotonous pace of my life (quoting my third English 102 paper there!) Ironically, many people have let reading fall by the wayside for exactly those reasons. They're letting their life get in the way.
Reading, like Math, is one of those things we all can't get around. In these economic times, the number of book sales has declined rapidly, and I'll be honest, I've been buying at discount bookstores a lot more. But that doesn't mean I've stopped reading. Why do I still read while others don't? Because I never lost sight of the pleasure and reprieve it gives me. In addition, I've never lost sight of the many benefits of reading, and how in turn, it helps me become a better writer and gives me continual inspiration.
Whether or not you are an avid reader and enjoy books, or you're on the other side of the spectrum, I would, as always, enjoy feedback. If my argument (if it is one at all) seems haphazard I will explain by saying I write what comes to me, and this argument stemmed from observing the world around me. As they all do. Enjoy reading! And pick up a book next time won't you?