"She left him; and they parted."

One of the struggles of English Language Learners (ELL students) is a lack of basic "active" reading skills. If you grew up reading, then you have likely developed active reading skills: you pause momentarily as you read, you note important details, re-read key passages, or even tab a page to return to after you finish the chapter. Sadly, my students grew up and thought reading was "passive" reading; in passive reading, the main goal is to read as many words out loud as quickly as you can. Some tests assume that if you read quickly, you are an effective reader; often, however, if you read quickly as an ELL student, you're missing major (key) points and have limited comprehension.

This is especially problematic with a novel like A Christmas Carol because you need to stop after every paragraph to understand the ponderous weight of each word. A key example that also provides a larger message during the Christmas season is in Stave Two of A Christmas Carol, when Belle releases a younger Scrooge from their engagement.

We never learn how Scrooge met Belle. Both poor, they fell hopelessly in love. Eventually, as Scrooge gained wealth, a golden idol replaces Belle.

Belle releases him from his engagement. She says:

I would gladly think otherwise if I could," she answered, "Heaven knows. When I have learned a Truth like this, I know how strong and irresistible it must be. But if you were free to-day, to-morrow, yesterday, can even I believe that you would choose a dowerless girl -- you who, in your very confidence with her, weigh everything by Gain: or, choosing her, if for a moment you were false enough to your one guiding principle to do so, do I not know that your repentance and regret would surely follow? I do; and I release you. With a full heart, for the love of him you once were."

A few short lines of dialogue later, and the narrator tells us that "she left him; and they parted." At first glance, it seems like a simple statement. But if you pause and read carefully, the words "and they parted" reveal far more about the moment of heartbreak. Scrooge does not chase after Belle; he lets her leave, and even walks the other way. [After this pause an explanation, my students were shocked that Scrooge would act so foolishly.]

And so I ask you, dear reader, to pause when you are reading. Studies show that as you have read this blog post, you only truly read the first paragraph (I'm sorry that it was a boring paragraph). By the time you are reading the last paragraph, you will likely read THIS but not this, since you skim only the right hand side of the page as you scroll down.

But most importantly, make sure you pause in life. It would be a true tragedy that in a rush to read the pages of your life story, you missed the most important moments of the novel.