Borrow versus Buy

I used to buy all of the books I read. I wanted to own them. I wanted to hold them. Smell them. Be the first to crack the spine. I wanted to collect them and keep them. I wanted to be able to look at them all lined up on a shelf and remember reading them. But then I realized how much more open my options were if I didn't buy but borrowed. From the library that is. I used to limit what books I read by thinking to myself...will I enjoy this book enough to buy it? If yes, then I would buy it. If I wasn't too sure, then I most likely passed it up. I couldn't afford/didn't want to spend all of my money on books that I might not finish or really enjoy enough to keep. Although in a dream world, maybe I would. With borrowing from the library I can get any book I want through the library system and if I don't love it or choose not to finish it, it's not a big deal. I just give it back. It doesn't sit on my shelf, reminding me that I haven't read it or that I didn't love it. Although I do have plenty of them, even still. I've found a greater joy in being able to experience any book I want rather than finding joy in having books in my possession.

I do occasionally buy books. I can't resist, I am a book lover after all. I usually get a lot of books for birthday or Christmas presents and stock up that way. And I like to collect reference books so I have access to obscure questions or trivia that might come up. Just a few months ago I realized I didn't have a book about the U.S. Presidents. I panicked! I couldn't believe I had missed getting a book like that. It's a must have for any household (isn't it?). My husband said that I could always look up any question I had online, but really that's not the same. As a kid I could sit for hours looking at the World Almanac and find a wealth of information on almost any subject I was interested in. The internet is great but, in my opinion, it can't take the place of books for everything.