Newspapers nourish the mind, heart and soul

A newspaper is much more than the sum of its parts: It is a living (figuratively) entity, created by living beings and composed of words imprinted upon the pulp produced from a onceliving tree. The printed word is unique, because, unlike photographs or videos, the images that reading creates in the minds of literates are idiosyncratic to each subscriber. In this era of conformity, it may be individualism’s final outpost.

Sweet memories of my dad reading his beloved newspaper, after a hard day’s mill labor, still tickle my mind, each morning, as I consume coffee, bread and my Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Brain food is the best jentacular treat — ask any newspaper junkie!

The first daily newspaper, the Roman Acta Diurna (Latin for Daily Acts), was handwritten on sheets of papyri beginning about 59 B.C., and it contained political, military and business news, along with the results of gladiatorial contests, gossip columns, notable births, deaths and marriages. We know from the Roman historian, Tacitus, who considered the publication’s news trivial, that it was so popular, copies were sent by couriers to all parts of the empire.

Today, as papers struggle to survive, the most important part of the whole newspaper kit and caboodle may be us, the subscribers. Grudges should be fleeting, and the fruits of so many talented journalists appreciated! The daily price of the PG is much less than a craft beer or a designer coffee, and it nourishes mind and heart and soul. ROB BILLER Fombell