读书的目的是什么？

I have read lots of books but forgotten most of them. What's the purpose of reading?（我读过很多书但是大部分都忘了，那么读书的目的是什么呢？）

得票最高的答案是：

When I was a child I ate a lot of food. Most of it is long gone and forgotten, but certainly some of it became my very bones and flesh.

Think of reading as the same thing for the mind.

（当我还是个孩子，我吃了很多食物。大部分早都消失了遗忘了，但其中一些肯定已经成为了我所有的骨头和肉。阅读对于大脑也是一样的。）