The Library - A Housing of Words
My earliest memory was anxious trepidation when walking into my hometown public library. The small-statured librarian with white, short hair and black-rimmed glasses met, not greeted, people entering the building with a cold stare willing them to remain silent, not utter a word. How intimidating! Thankfully, my mother, who loved books and libraries, helped me remain calm, when opening the library’s door to a world of discovery and wonder.
Various locales for reading and learning abound. Public buildings, private homes, and school media centers can house a collection of books, other print and nonprint material. Today, people can access the internet with applications like Kindle, iBooks, and Libby. For convenience, there are traveling bookmobiles and free, small library boxes throughout scattered neighborhoods.
In home libraries do people display their printed treasures on book shelves anymore? Has minimalism, the decluttered movement, and internet books replaced or diminished many home libraries? In the past, it was such fun to enter friends’ homes, peruse their shelved books, and get glimpses of their varied interests on history, mystery, and fiction with possibly finding the next book to read. Personalities displayed with books are no longer visible.
In schools, this venue has changed with the times. In the past children quietly entered a school library, checked out their desired books, or sat at a table and silently read or worked on a report. Now called a media center, it encompasses not only books but also computers, videos, short films, etc. Learning spaces with comfy, inviting furniture for group brainstorming and individual study await students now. In the 50s, 60s, and 70s, people used libraries’ Encyclopedia Britannica and World Book for reference. Today with the touch of a keyboard, the needed material for that school project or report instantly appears.
A library can be the cornerstone of a community. When moving to a new town, families seek out locations of the school, place of worship, hospital, grocery store, gas station, and the library. Parents open up a world of words for their young children by taking them to weekly, story-time hour and checking out a bundle of books to read together at home. Oh, getting that revered library card, a privilege and rite of passage! Remember that grownup feeling of handing the card and stack of books to be checked out at the front desk? Those who immigrate to the United States may make their first English-speaking friend with the local librarian. It can offer a quiet refuge from the chaos and noise of the outside world. Best of all, it’s free!
Have we lost the sanctuary of quietness, patience, and reflection for the accessibility, convenience, and immediacy of our wants through advanced technology?
Let’s not let libraries go by the wayside. Community libraries now offer much more than the printed word. They are bustling with activity! Classes, lectures, themed displays, programs, and meeting rooms—all take place in this haven of readers, thinkers, and learners.
As for myself, once having been a student researching a project, then a parent with a young child listening at story time to an adult learner taking a class, I am now remiss as a senior citizen. Shame on me. Whether to check out books, volunteer, take a class, see a display, or find some quiet space to decompress, I want and need to support my local library branches. I still have my two library cards and will again open those library doors to a world of discovery and wonder.
Finally, all over the world little library boxes are popping up. If not familiar, click on the link below. They started in 2009 in Wisconsin and are now global. Little boxes with doors, often decorated to look like little houses are taking up residence in many neighborhoods. Readers are encouraged to exchange books, a book swap. Put in books you have read and select ones to read. It’s another excellent way to trade words, thoughts, and ideas. Three cheers for libraries, whether big or small! https://littlefreelibrary.org/map/
Bit by bit, that’s all she wrote…