“I do not like them in a box. I do not like them with a fox. I do not like them in a house. I do not like them with a mouse. I do not like them here or there. I do not like them anywhere. I do not like green eggs and ham. I do not like them, Sam-I-am.”

“Hey diddle diddle, the cat and the fiddle, the cat jumped over the moon.”

“Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water. Jack fell down and broke his crown and Jill came tumbling after.”

“Where is thumbkin? Where is thumbkin? Here I am, Here I am. How are you today sir? Very well, thank you. Go away, Go away.”

“Yankee doodle came to town, A-ridin’ on a pony; stuck a feather in his hat, and called it macaroni.”

And the list of childhood literature can go on and on; the few that you just finished meandering through are some of my earliest memories. The funny part is that once you start reading the actual words to some of your first and favorite nursery rhymes you don’t mind thumbing through a few more pages of memories. These are classics that will never be forgotten and what is even more interesting is that many of these simple nursery rhymes had a lot more meaning than a child could ever comprehend.
As I progressed in years my favorites ranged from Matilda to The Underground Railroad. I enjoyed the traditional fictional book as well as, being able to come to understand a world I was never a part of by reading a descriptive true story. I was not always an avid reader, however I have come to really appreciate a wide variety of books. Recently I have read books like The Shack, The Pursuit of God, Ordering Your Private World, Under the Overpass and Visioneering. I think more recently than ever before I have craved reading like I crave chocolate. There were times this summer when I woke up and just wanted to sit outside and get lost in a book for a while.
Out of all the reading I have done, I do have to say that The Pursuit of God and Under the Overpass were two recent books that had a great impact on my life. The Pursuit of God effected my walk with God in a tremendous way and challenged my heart more than my mind. Under the Overpass is a book that surrounds a social injustice that I am extremely passionate about – homelessness. It is a journal of two men who gave up everything to experience living on the streets in different cities. They journal their day to day experiences and they allow their audience to understand the sights, smells and hopelessness of living without a roof over your head. The struggles that are described are heart wrenching; I believe this is the type of understanding everyone needs to come to; and working to educate people about the growing issue of homelessness is crucial.

All in all literature matters. It matters to the writer because this is their chosen venue of communication. And it matters to the reader, because it enhances education, increases understanding, betters communication between people that may not otherwise communicate and at times opens the reader up to topics that are difficult to study had it not been communicated in a creative manner. Not only has literature acted as a type of entertainment venue, but it has also allowed people to express their feelings and has approached social issues, government issues, laws and so on in a manner that is acceptable. When words cannot civilly be spoken, more than likely they can be civilly written down and read.