I do not know if I can say that reading Tolkien has made me better morally, made me kinder or more giving or more loving. But I know Tolkien has enriched me. I have a love of beauty and the natural world that is far beyond anything I had before I started to read Tolkien. I have a great appreciation now for the exquisite use of words. And Tolkien's writings taught me to respond more emotively to literature. I used to be ashamed of crying over books or movies, but now I am glad to be so moved. More than anything, the battle cries in TTT and RoTK and the great battles of RoTK make me cry--I don't know why, really. But if to be enriched is to become better, I have indeed.
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I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend.
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