Take a Moment

Today is National Library Workers Day and this whole week is National Library Week. By happenstance, I wrote a tribute to the public library last week (see www.news-leader.com/blogs/louisejackson) and won't do another one, although I could, given the importance of library/media centers in our society. But I do want to take a moment to remind you of some of the special things library workers do. They find pieces of information I would likely never discover, simply because they have access to special subscription-only reference sites and are trained to use them. They know just the book to recommend when I'm not sure what to choose for a young visitor to whom I want to read. They can find books that have escaped my eye even when I've looked three times before asking. They locate and take special orders for books that will have to come from another library far away. They take time to explain the intricacies of using the computer when someone isn't sure. They listen patiently to complaints from people who feel libraries ought still to be the quiet refuges they think they remember from years before.They set up programs for the patrons of their particular branch. They run story hours for children and design related crafts. Then they clean up afterwards! (Think glue and glitter on the tables and the floors.)

Library workers do all this and still take time to give welcoming smiles at the check-out desk and speak to small children who aren't yet old enough to have a library card. In short, they make library/media centers special places for all of us - places we look forward to visiting. Without those workers, the libraries would be a dull places indeed. So I hope you'll take a moment to stop by your local library branch today and thank the workers there for all they do, even if you don't need to turn in a book or check out another.

Finally, I want to recommend a picture book that you will love, no matter what your age or interest: The Boy Who Was Raised by Librarians, written by Carla Morris and illustrated delightfully by Brad Sneed. It is a tribute to wonderful library workers who changed a boy's life.