Foucault's Pendulum

   Helen was the Table Topics Master (or Mistress if you want to be correct) this week at Toastmasters. I always enjoy it when Helen has this role because she comes up with questions that are interesting, but not overly difficult. (I don't mind challenge, but there are some topics that are just too hard.)

   She began one of her questions by talking about a night when she couldn't sleep. She picked up a book she had been reading thinking that it would help. The mystery she picked up was so engaging that it kept her awake reading. 

   The person that answered the question talked about a book on the history of philosophy that he had just finished reading. It was a long book and a hard book to read. He had to reread parts of it to make sure he understood it. He said that he had enjoyed reading it.

   His answer reminded me of a book that has been sitting on my bookshelf for a long time. The book is Foucault's Pendulum. It is a mystery written by Umberto Eco. Eco was an Italian writer. His two most popular English language books were The Name of the Rose and Foucault's Pendulum.

   I had read The Name of the Rose and liked it very much. I got a copy of Foucault's Pendulum. I assumed that it would be as easy to get through as the first book. 

   I was wrong. For some reason it was much more ponderous than I thought. It wasn't as interesting as Rose was. I was determined to read it though. It was not a cheap book. I would get partway through and then stop. every year I would take it out to read and every year, I would get bogged down and put it away. It was becoming my literary waterloo.

   The book was packed away and moved around with me. Earlier this year, I unpacked the book and looked at it. If I was following the KonMari decluttering method, I would have given the book away. It had not brought me joy. Instead I decided to keep the book. I was not going to be defeated by 641 pieces of paper. I was going to read that book. Then I put it on a bookshelf with the rest of the books I was keeping. I didn't give it a second thought.

   Until I heard that answer at Toastmasters. It was almost like the book was calling out to me. Maybe it was time to read it. Now that I'm a little older, a little more patient and have a bit more free time I could read it.

   I found the book on the downstairs bookshelf and brought it upstairs. It was in perfect shape. It looked brand new. I decided it would have a  new home in the bookshelf in our bedroom. I have one book that I'm in the middle of right now. Once I finish that, I'm going to read Foucault's Pendulum. All the way through. This time I will finish that book.