Literacy in everyday life

"Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness" is often quoted as the main goals in the U.S. Declaration of Independence. As I said I can attest to the third one.

As to life, one's very life can depend on being able to read labels to detect toxic substances or read prescription doses. The skill is also necessary to attain better jobs, to use information for daily life functions such as grocery shopping, or to learn the rules to pass a driver's test.

For liberty, one needs control over one's life and there is none if one can't read. You can't vote or drive, or manage your money without knowing how to read. And in today's world everything is governed by computer use for information.

Illiterate people suffer far more stress, embarrassment and sense of inadequacy. They are more likely to be employed in dirty or dangerous jobs, and are more apt to smoke and eat poorly. In short they are forced into poverty.

It is never too late to learn to read. A person might be poor, old, or incarcerated, but if not dead, he can still learn to read. My granddaughter told me of a man who "got by" until he was 70, but then felt the need to read. He sought help from a primary school teacher. He even joined her grade 1 class. He was delighted to read the overhead signs in the grocery store that helped him find items and cut down on his shopping time.

There is help.

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