Who wrote the book?

Every week, I ponder what I shall blog about.  Like some kind of Internet forum, my head is full of a thousand unrelated threads.  So I wait for the inspiration to come on its own.
And Voila! There it was:

I wouldn't call myself an avid reader, but I have a deep LOVE AFFAIR going on with books.  This picture transported me to the time of that budding romance.  I recall FORCING my Mom to teach me to read. I even remember the first words I could read...  "cat, hat, bat".  I remember the excitement of that moment.  I WAS READING!

A lot of people don't like to read.  And the ones who do, do so for a variety of reasons.  I began reading for the pure pleasure of it and to escape into other worlds that were MUCH more exciting than mine.  Later, reading became a means to gain information.  Sadly, I gave up much of my "pleasure" reading (TV shows and movies were easier and faster).  Next, I was a "student" and books became a source of knowledge for me.

I grew up with the belief that knowledge was power and began seeking this "power" early on.  I believed that my studies in physical therapy and psychology would give me the "power" to heal.  I have relied heavily on the idea that I can find the answer to anything in a book.  In reality, to be an "authority" on even just one small tiny subject, would take a lifetime.  I didn't know it at the time, but  I was "seeking" authority.  And I was looking for it in the written word.

What intrigued me about this cartoon, was the concept of books being "friends".  It is the whole idea of "authorship" that I am now pondering.  Just consider the word "author"...or "author"ity.  Everything I read is written by a unique human being.  Not one of them is a final authority on anything.  There is just too much to know.  And yet I have a deep longing to have this "author"ity figure...who knows EVERYTHING!  (Where did that desire come from???)
  
There are certain authors I connect to.  I devour all they have written and I feel like I know them.  There is a friendship.  If I were to meet my favorite authors, it would probably surprise them how well I knew them. But they don't know me at all.  Wouldn't it be too cool if the friendships were two-way?   I am sure that is why so many of us have fantasies of becoming deep intimate friends with authors and songwriters.

So I am sitting now, surrounded by books written by "friends" that are near and dear to me.  I am also typing on a computer that has access to a megaXmega storehouse of knowledge.  I realize that all of this was "authored" by somebody.   I am beginning to understand that every single person I meet has a story.  Although unwritten, the story is still there.  So in a sense, we are each unpublished stories, with our self as the main character.   

Even though everyone has their own story, the question I pose is..."Who is the author?"  I mean...who is the REAL AUTHOR of the story about me or about you...or anything?  I can tell you right now, that the story I tell you about myself was not CREATED or AUTHORED by me.  I am just the storyteller.  And there is the possibility that the story I tell you about me...really isn't about me. It might just be a subplot of a bigger story!

In my lifetime, I have gotten "goo-goo" over many books and many authors.  I share them with my friends.  I am certain at the time that I have found the BEST book ever!  But sooner or later, I find some flaws in the philosophy or the methodology it proposes.  And I am disappointed that my author was not the "author"ity I had hoped for.

But I have some very GOOD news.  I have finally found THE book I was looking for. Yes, I think I actually found it!  I didn't want to shout about it too soon, because I have a track record of jumping on the nearest band wagon...when it comes to books with an answer.

Anyway, if  you haven't heard, it is called the Bible.  It is WAY different than any book I have ever read.  I never get tired of reading it.  It has a story line that is fantastic. If just one person wrote it, I would call it excellent fiction. If a handful of people wrote it over a twenty year period, I would have to say it might be true.  The amazing thing is.... this book claims to have over 40 writers over the course of 1500 years...and yet it reads like a cohesive story written by one person.  HOW COULD THAT BE?

And wait there is more...  the AUTHOR of the Book is GOD?!  Is THAT what I have been seeking all along?  And this book says that the book itself is already written on my heart?!  I mean how mindblowing is that?..Seeking my heart's deepest desires lead me back to a book that led me back to my core...my AUTHOR! 

I could go on and on about the beauty of the Bible.  At this point I must confess that the last thing I ever wanted to be was a "Bible thumper".  And just look what has happened....that's how amazing it is! 
 
And wait, there is more...according to His book, our Author WANTS to have a two-way relationship with ME and all of his readers!  An Author who responds to his fan mail...anytime.

And that is where "cat, hat, bat" has taken me to.  Millions of words later, I feel the same joy of discovery now that I felt at that moment.  That is one of my many personal stories...and my telling it may be my part in a bigger story.  For me, that makes it worth telling.  Thank you for reading!