When I graduated from high school in the US nearly 40 years ago, after numerous teenage discussions with my British immigrant Dad about politics, he gave me a subscription to the Guardian Weekly with the admonition, “If you’re going to be a liberal, at least be an educated one.” I’ve kept my subscription current ever since. I read through 10 years of college and graduate school, including a year at the London School of Economics. I read through time on the west coast, in the south and now on the east coast. I updated the address with each move, and kept copies for Dad when he visited.
Reading the Guardian isn’t about learning the news; it’s about understanding it. I always used to read the Weekly from back to front, moving gently to the news. The reporting and language is rich and deep, and brings perspective to us somewhat myopic Americans. For some reason, with the new magazine format, I start at the beginning.
Regardless, the Guardian remains part of the greatest gift my father ever gave me: an education. I so miss my Dad, who left us almost 15 years ago, and the Guardian Weekly reminds me of him every time it arrives.
