How Quick Read Moments Began
Sometimes things start earlier than you realise.
Ela Urbanowicz
2 min read
How Quick Read Moments Began
Quick Read Moments started in the most unexpected place: my mum's bathroom.
One evening, during a visit home, I found myself sitting there a little longer than necessary. There was no phone within reach, so my attention wandered around the room looking for something to do. After a while, I realised I was reading the instructions printed on the washing machine. Not because I needed to know how the washing machine worked. Not because I was particularly interested in spin cycles. My mind was simply looking for something to engage with.
That moment stayed with me.
When I went back to bed, an idea appeared almost fully formed: what if there was a book designed specifically for these forgotten moments? A book you could leave in the bathroom and pick up for a few minutes at a time. Something entertaining, interesting, and thoughtful. A distraction from scrolling. A companion for small pockets of time.
That idea became Bathroom Reads.
At first, it was simply a fun project. I imagined short facts, curious observations, gentle humour, and little insights that could be read in just a few minutes. But as I worked on the book, something else began to emerge. I realised the book wasn't really about bathrooms. It was about moments.
The small spaces between the bigger parts of life.
The few quiet minutes before bed. The pause while waiting for a train. Sitting with a cup of tea. Watching rain fall outside a window, lighting a candle at the end of a busy day, taking a deep breath before moving on to the next task.
The more I reflected on it, the more I noticed that many of the things I love revolve around these moments. I love reading books, not only for the stories they contain, but for the quiet space they create. I practice yoga because it encourages me to be present rather than constantly rushing toward the next thing. I enjoy making candles because there is something comforting about creating an atmosphere that invites stillness. I find peace in nature, where nothing is demanding my attention, and there is no urgency to be anywhere else. Even pottery, with its slow and deliberate process, teaches the value of paying attention to what is right in front of you.
What began as a simple bathroom book slowly became something bigger. It became a reminder of something I think many of us are missing.
We have become incredibly good at filling every empty moment. A queue becomes a scroll through social media. A waiting room becomes a stream of notifications. A quiet evening becomes an endless feed of content. Without noticing, we lose the small moments that once allowed our minds to wander, reflect, rest, and be.
Quick Read Moments is my attempt to reclaim some of those spaces.
Not by rejecting technology or pretending modern life should be slower than it is, but by offering an alternative. A gentle invitation to look up from the screen for a few minutes. To read something short. To think. To smile. To become curious. To notice the moment you're already in.
Because sometimes the smallest moments become the most meaningful ones.
And sometimes, all it takes to change the direction of an idea is reading the instructions on a washing machine.