“Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed.  You cannot uneducate the person who has learned to read.  You cannot humiliate the person who feels pride.  You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore.”    (Cesar Chavez, 1984).   

Last week the bookshop where I work celebrated a grand re-opening after moving into their new home. The Twig Bookshop at the Pearl in San Antonio, Texas (http://www.thetwig.com) has been around for many years and is an icon of reading and learning for adults and children in the San Antonio area.  The opening focused on the children, with storytelling, puppets and even the very hungry caterpillar her/himself.  The store was full of people; parents, grandparents, babies, strollers, shoppers, people who are faithful patrons of the store and first timers.  It was wonderful.  But, what moved me the most were the times I would look around and see a child, legs twisted under her, sitting in a chair, lost in a book as if she were the only person in  the whole place.  The concentration and intensity in her eyes was a wonder to behold.    To watch a young person engrossed in the love of reading is a gift to behold and hope for our future.