A Sweet, Simple Joy

Okay, I just had to write this to share something that has been a profound part of my life, initially afforded to me at a very young age by my very wise mother.  Years ago, when my brother and I were kids, we had a beloved ritual with my mother that still affects me to this day.  Every so often, she would drive us to the huge public library, and allow us time to pick out arms full of books.  This was often followed by a trip to the grocery store, where she would get the groceries for the week, to include treats such as licorice for us.  We would then go home and disappear into our rooms, to chew on sweets while we were absorbed for hours in whatever adventure could be found in the pages of our borrowed books.

To this day, there is a
special joy for me in the
free knowledge, adventure, inspiration, opportunities, and ideas that can be found at my local libraries.  Yes, the internet is a great place to do some research, and ebooks are a fine idea in some instances, but there's still something about curling up with a great book with actual pages.  A story that you cannot put down to eat or sleep.  Or a how-to that helps you teach yourself to do something new and fun or useful.  Or try something historical with amazing facts you never knew.

People seem to gravitate to coffee shops for a quiet place to read, work, or study, but the library is the originator of the quiet space, perfect for these activities.  The last bastion of respect enough for one's neighbors to be quiiiiiieeeet (no coffee shop music or posers).  You can't even get that in church anymore, because people seem to constantly forget to put their mobile devices on silent.

Because of my love for books and libraries, one of my dreams was always to have a big, beautiful library of my own, in my home, full of lots of beautiful books, especially plenty of art books.  I imagined that by the time I was a wrinkled little old lady, my library would be massive, and would be turned into a public library (with lots of reading nooks and art on the walls, of course) named after me once I was gone.  I hit Ikea a few years ago and started on that dream.  It's evolved beautifully and I enjoy it.  I still, however, love to go to the public library, and hope others do, too.