Musing Mondays (Nov.22)

November 22, 2010

This week’s musing is yet another read-and-respond! (are you getting tired of hearing me say that?) LOL…

I was reading one of my favorite blogs, the other day, and came across a post that talked about truth vs. fact. Part of the post had this to say:

From my childhood on, I’d learned a lot of truth about the human condition from reading fiction. In many cases, I learned more from fiction than from observing my real world…

I think that people who discount fiction don’t really understand it–or haven’t read much of it. They don’t grasp the power of story to carry truth.

…Some truths are universal and timeless (like the lessons on friendship learned from Charlotte’s Web.)

My all-time favorite children’s book was Little Women. I learned a lot of important truths from the March family: how to love deeply, how to grieve a loss and go on, and how to feed the imagination…

At the end of the post, there is a question posed, and this is what I’m using for today’s MUSING MONDAYS: What truths do you remember learning in fiction?

I have learned that perseverance is an admirable quality… I have learned that love stands the test of time… I have learned that friendships shouldn’t be taken for granted and that they are a staple of the human existence… I have learned that honesty, trust, faithfulness, love and respect are the building blocks for a solid marriage… and I have learned that we can conquer any obstacle if we put our mind to it and don’t limit ourselves.

Of course, I’m sure I’ve learned much, MUCH more than just these things. But, this is what I can think of for the time being.

I think the fact that fiction can convey truth is one of the reasons why I need my books to have an air of believability to them in order for me to love them; there has to be an element of truth to it in order for me to fully relate to the story I’m reading. I think the best stories are the ones that teach us something, too. Not only are they an escape from the real world, but they are also a method for relating to and learning from our world.

PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT with either the link to your own Musing Mondays post, or share your answer in a comment here (if you don’t have a blog). Thanks!