Imagine. What if you were out for a beach walk alone and came across a message in a bottle that spoke directly to your situation and told you exactly what you needed to hear? I've come to think of many old books as serving precisely that function in my own life. They contain messages that have crossed the ocean of space and time from someone I didn't know, and have washed up right next to me. And they're often a great blessing, very needed, and useful right away. Those who do not read are like the beachcomber who sees the bottle and walks on by it. Let's make the most of every one we come across. The insight we most need might be very close.