Giving Your Family the Wings of Reading

Books are like wings: they give us the power to cross time and space, carry us out to explore the ocean of knowledge, and let us taste the richness and variety of life. For a family, cultivating a habit and culture of reading is not only an important path to bettering each member, but an effective means of strengthening cohesion and passing on the family’s values.

In this fast-changing age, each of us faces all kinds of challenges and opportunities, and the family — our steadfast bulwark — makes the transmission and growth of its culture all the more important. Reading is like a pair of invisible wings, helping us soar freely through the sky of knowledge and find our own direction and place.

By starting a family reading circle, we hope to build a platform for exchanging ideas and sharing wisdom, where every family member can find solace for the heart and sparks for the mind in reading. In this warm and meaningful space, we can share not only the knowledge and wisdom of books but also the experiences and reflections of life, inspiring one another and growing together.

Reading is no longer a solitary journey but a gathering of the family; knowledge is no longer cold words on a page but a kindling for the heart. Together, let us find belonging in the fragrance of books, set our dreams aloft in reading, and write a brilliant future for our family.

Slogan

“Let reading become an enjoyment, let the heart find a measure of peace, let the mind strike a spark.” This is the slogan of the Flourishing Tree Family Office reading circle. By treating reading as an enjoyment, we learn to find joy among the words and cultivate a habit of continual learning. By letting the heart find peace in reading, we give our busy lives a quiet harbor, helping us find balance and inner strength. And by treating reading as kindling for the mind, we ignite the capacity for innovation and critical thought, driving ourselves to keep exploring and advancing.

Why do we need a slogan? A slogan is the distillation of our culture, the declaration of our values. Simple yet profound, it can quickly convey our love of reading and our aspiration for the family’s culture, guiding members to strive together toward a common goal.

Every family has its own distinctive culture and values. We therefore encourage each family to discuss and decide on a slogan suited to its own character and needs. The process itself is a reflection and elevation of the family’s culture, helping to deepen members’ sense of belonging and identity.

Reading Themes and Thematic Reading

In our family reading circle, deciding together on a reading theme is a deeply meaningful process. It is not reading for reading’s sake, but a way to find, in the ocean of knowledge, a shared beacon that guides every family member to explore and grow in the same direction.

The Family and Investing: This theme aims to help family members understand deeply the meaning of wealth and the wisdom of investing, so that they may grow the family’s wealth while also passing on the wisdom of managing it.

Reason and Science: Through this theme, we encourage family members to cultivate a scientific way of thinking and rational judgment, to learn to see the world through the lens of science and to face life with a rational attitude.

The Heart and Growth: This theme attends to the inner world and personal growth. We hope family members can find solace for the heart through reading, awaken their inner strength, and achieve self-transcendence.

History and Its Figures: By studying history and learning the lives of great figures, we can draw wisdom and strength from them, better understanding the present and looking toward the future.

Education and Children: This theme focuses on the education of children and cross-generational communication. We believe that through reading, parents can better understand the true meaning of education and find the ways of teaching best suited to their children.

Health and Living: Under this theme, we explore how, through a sound way of life and scientific health management, we can raise the quality of life and pursue a higher standard of living.

The reading themes listed above serve only as an initial reference and prompt. We strongly encourage every member of the family reading circle to take an active part in the discussion and decide together on our reading direction.

Everyone’s interests and passions are unique. Through our shared effort, we hope to find reading themes that both provoke deep thought and bring every member joy and keen interest. Let reading no longer be a dull, monotonous task, but a bright feature of our lives — an enjoyment full of delight and inspiration. In this way, every gathering of our reading circle becomes a feast of knowledge and a cleansing of the spirit, so that reading truly becomes an enjoyment.

We suggest setting a shared reading theme each quarter, and encouraging everyone to choose, under that theme, the books that interest them for reading and sharing.

Thematic reading is a way of choosing and reading related books around a particular theme; it can help us explore a field more deeply and comprehensively, raising both the efficiency and the depth of our reading.

Through this approach, we gain not only diverse perspectives and rich information from different books, but also — in sharing and discussion — the original insights and interesting ideas of other family members, broadening our horizons and strengthening our capacity for thought.

Such a reading circle is no longer a one-way transmission of information but an interactive, vibrant platform for sharing knowledge. Everyone is both participant and contributor; we grow through shared exploration and learning, and gain through sharing and exchange. Through thematic reading, the circle becomes more engaging and more focused, and what everyone gains is richer and more profound.

Roles in the Reading Circle

In our family reading circle, we set three key roles: the host, the timekeeper, and the thinker. Each has its own distinct function and responsibility, and together they ensure the circle runs smoothly and richly.

The Host

The host is the guide and organizer of the reading circle, responsible for controlling the overall flow of the event and creating its atmosphere. They must prepare the agenda in advance and ensure the content is rich and substantial.

During the event, the host must guide the discussion, encourage every member to speak up, and ensure that each topic is fully discussed.

The host must also summarize the key points of the discussion in a timely way, lead everyone toward deeper thought, and ensure the circle achieves its intended effect.

The Timekeeper

The timekeeper’s main responsibility is to control the timing of the event, ensuring that each segment proceeds on schedule and that each member’s speaking time is fairly allotted.

They must keep close watch on the passage of time, remind speakers to mind the clock when appropriate, and ensure the event is completed smoothly within the set time.

Through the timekeeper’s efforts, we can ensure the circle’s efficiency and effectiveness, so that everyone has the chance to share their thoughts and to hear the voices of others.

The Thinker (Sharer)

The thinker is the soul of the reading circle; through deep reading and careful reflection, they bring everyone new perspectives and rich content. In the sharing segment, the thinker must express their understanding and insight into a book in clear, compelling language, sparking everyone’s thought and discussion. They must also be ready to take questions from other members, exploring and learning together.

In the family reading circle, every member is a thinker; everyone takes part in sharing (including the host and the timekeeper), so that all minds may flow, sparks of thought may strike, and a river of wisdom may form.

Through the collaboration of these three roles, our family reading circle becomes more orderly and more vibrant. Everyone can find their own place in it, bring their strengths to bear, and together create a feast of knowledge and a gathering of the spirit.

The Flow of the Reading Circle

1. The Thinker’s Sharing Segment (15 minutes each)

a. Introducing the Book (5 minutes)

• Introduce the author’s background and achievements, helping the audience better understand the author’s views and standpoint.
• Outline the book’s structure, highlighting its main chapters and content, to give the audience a clear map for reading.
• Briefly introduce the book’s main content, giving the audience an overall sense of it.

b. Sharing the Core Content (8 minutes)

• Choose one or two core ideas or arguments from the book for an in-depth reading.
• In light of the author’s views, share your own thoughts and insights, showing your distinctive understanding.
• Try to connect the book’s ideas with actual life or work, sharing experience or cases of practical application to bring the knowledge closer to life.

c. Summing Up (2 minutes)

• Summarize the main content and views shared, emphasizing their importance or the inspiration they offer.
• Raise one or two thought-provoking questions or topics to set the stage for the interactive sharing segment that follows.

2. The Interactive Sharing Segment

a. Questions and Responses

• The audience may raise questions based on the thinker’s sharing, and the thinker responds.
• Encourage the audience to take an active part — not only in asking questions but in sharing their own views and feelings.

b. In-Depth Discussion

• Based on the questions raised and the content shared, the host guides everyone into deeper exploration.
• Ensure, as far as possible, that the discussion is broad and varied, so that different voices can all be heard.
• If the number of participants is large, break into smaller groups for discussion.

c. Wrap-Up and Thanks

• At the end of the interactive segment, the host gives a brief wrap-up, summarizing the key points and takeaways of the discussion.
• Thank the members who took part, fostering a positive and inclusive atmosphere in the reading circle.

Again, this is only the flow of the Flourishing Tree Family Office reading circle, offered for reference. Every family can set a flow suited to its own atmosphere and preferences. The flow is only a tool, in service of creating a reading circle with a good atmosphere and good results.

Conclusion

As the “Giving Your Family the Wings of Reading” initiative deepens, we hope family reading will not stop at the transmission of knowledge but become a bond of emotional exchange and dialogue of the heart. Every reading, every sharing, is a striking of sparks among family members, a resonance stirred in the depths of the heart.

In this warm reading community, we grow together and explore together the true meaning of life and the treasures of knowledge. Reading becomes an enjoyment, a nourishment of the spirit, a way of life. We believe that, through the shared effort and continual exploration of family members, this reading circle will become the most brilliant star in the family’s culture, offering a beacon of wisdom and a harbor for the heart to every generation.

Together we explore the world of reading, letting the heart find solace among the words and the mind find new life in exchange. In this warm and vibrant family reading circle, we not only draw knowledge but find belonging and a resonance of the soul. This power from books is like a quietly flowing stream, nourishing every corner of the family, so that our cultural depth and the light of our wisdom may pass down from generation to generation, never to be extinguished.