What The Christian Science Monitor Means to Me May 12, 2014 ISSUE

A 'trusty friend and educator'

Yvonne Renoult

I consider The Christian Science Monitor a trusty friend and educator.

Although the Monitor was in our home while I was growing up, what actually encouraged me to start reading the Monitor was an ad that I saw when I was 20-something. The ad quoted a young woman as saying that the Monitor opened the world to her. She never took much interest in what was going on in the world until she started to read the Monitor. It broke things down in a way that stirred her, educated her, and broadened her perspective. This describes the Monitor’s eventual effect on me.

I am constantly learning from the Monitor that one can approach issues objectively. It demonstrates the value of going beyond the first emotional impression of an issue to look for whatever hidden good might be found.

While the Monitor often tackles tough issues, its balanced and non-sensational reporting helps remove the feelings of hopelessness that the news so often imposes. It keeps me engaged in the world’s challenges and triumphs, and the metaphysical article at the end of each issue (found under “A Christian Science perspective”) reminds me to pray about world problems.

I remember it being suggested by an admired college administrator to read at least the headlines in the Monitor if one felt too busy to read it all. A quick perusal, when I miss a chance to settle down for a longer read, still enlarges and often lifts my perspective higher. I like to think of myself as not just a Monitor subscriber and reader, but hopefully a “Monitor thinker.”

While I appreciate the easy and quick access of csmonitor.com, I also love sitting by the fireplace or by the ocean with a hard copy of the weekly edition in hand. When I’m finished with my hard copy, it is gratefully accepted at the local youth hostel, laundromat, or by the parking attendants at a nearby garage. I’m always looking for new ways to share this newspaper. The past two years I have given a few holiday gift subscriptions away on freecycle.org, a “gifting” website. The Monitor is a “best kept secret” that I love to share.

About the author

Yvonne Renoult lives in San Francisco, California.

Send a comment to the editors

We'd love to hear from you!

Easily submit your testimonies, articles, and poems online.

Submit