“What’s that?” My granddaughter asked me, eyeing what was in my hands.
“It’s a book,” I responded.
“What does it do?” she asked me.
“It doesn’t do anything,” I said. “It’s a book, you open it up and you read it.”
She reached out her small hands towards me and asked, “Can I see it?” I handed it to her. She examined it, turning it over in her hands several times. “How do you turn it on?” she asked.
“You don’t turn it on,” I explained. “You open it up and read it.”
“You already said that, Grandpa,” she pointed out. “How does it work?”
“Come sit on my lap and I’ll show you,” I said. I gave her a hand as she climbed upon my lap. Once she was situated, I put the book into her hands and told her to lift the cover, which she did.
She looked intently at the first page of the book. “What are these?” she asked, pointing to the markings on the page.
“Those are letters and they are used together to create words,” I explained. But I could tell that she didn’t understand. So I started reading the words on the pages. She was fascinated, but still confused.
“This is how we learned when I was your age,” I explained. “Reading books like this was entertaining as well as informative.”
“So you had to read a book like this to learn things?” She asked.
“Yes,” I said. “I read many, many books. I loved reading books. But we didn’t have eKnowlege implants like you have today. We had to read books back in the day.”
Written for Rachel Poli’s Time To Write prompt for this week.
This, That, and the Other 
‘How do you turn it on’………… yes, I can see that from someone very young.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Nice!
LikeLiked by 1 person
painful but lovely
LikeLiked by 1 person
How times have changed!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I hope this never happens but it would not be surprising
LikeLiked by 1 person
I hope it never happens also, but I do admit that I read most of the books I read on my iPhone, so I guess having to “turn it on” is relevant in my case.
LikeLike
I’ve witnessed that with cassette tapes
LikeLiked by 1 person
Does that mean they are going to insert Google directly into my brain? Ouch.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The future!
LikeLike
Don’t want that to happen, but you don’t get what you want. Do you now, Sensei?
LikeLiked by 1 person
I wonder if reading will become a lost art at some point in the future.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I hope not. I still enjoy Crime and Punishment not to mention Mayor of Casterbridge is my favourite novel, Hardy my favourite novelist.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I really hope it never gets to this point! I love to hold a book in my hands still and feel the pages as I turn them.
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re a dying breed, I’m afraid. I’ve pretty much made the transition to ebooks, when I can carry my entire library on my iPhone. But I do, on occasion, miss the feel and the smell of physical books.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you! I thought I was the only one that liked the smell of books… they do have a smell. I feel a little less crazy now! LOL
LikeLiked by 1 person
There’s a wonderful children’s book called, “Its a Book” and deals with the same points you raise in your post.
LikeLiked by 1 person
This was so cute, lol.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks.
LikeLike