Why Literacy Is Important

Ever since I was a little kid I have always loved reading and speaking. My family has always talked to me as if I was an adult and I think that has helped me greatly. I remember my mom reading aloud to me when I was a little kid and then I learned how to read aloud myself. When I was little I don’t think I really knew how important my new skills were, and I definitely didn’t know what literacy meant. I have come to believe that literacy is one of the most important skills that a person can have. To me literacy means not only the ability to read and write but I think it includes all forms of communicating your thoughts to other people. Whether it be speaking, reading, writing, dancing, music, art, or any other expressive form I believe it is all literacy. Literacy goes beyond the print-only world of reading and writing. Being literate allows us to explore more, to speak out, it opens doors to worlds we could never visit. Literacy is a type of freedom that I do not take lightly.
Like fifty percent of marriages, my parent’s marriage ended in divorce when I was about thirteen. After nearly two and a half years of no face-to-face communication with my dad I finally made the choice to see him in person a little over a month ago. We talked about a lot of stuff but one of the things we talked about was how important it is to talk to people and tell them how you feel about things. I realized that if you communicate and tell people how you truly feel whether you’re angry or frustrated or sad that you can avoid an infinite number of problems. It seems like a no-brainer now but for whatever reason talking about your feelings is always kind of