Should We Send a Valentine’s Day Card To The Library?

valentine candy boxIf there’s one resource I absolutely love, it’s the library. If there’s one place that levels the playing field, if there’s one place I don’t mind my tax dollars going, it’s the library. The OKC Metro Library system has been a resource I’ve used for over 20 years now, and I continue to marvel at what the library system has to offer.

I once heard a speaker say that information wasn’t power, that only applied information was power. If information by itself were power, then the library wouldn’t be the quietest, deadest, least-crowded place in town. The point being made was that in order to get results, just having “information” wasn’t enough, one had to do something with it. To take ACTION. I agree with that, as I’ve written before, but I think we might be tempted misinterpret that to think it’s a slam on the library, when the exact opposite ought to be the case.

Og Mandino wrote that at his lowest point emotionally, found himself at his public library. He found himself strangely compelled to start investing his time in a self-directed education that would ultimately result in helping him raise himself from a “hopeless bum” into a millionaire. He ended up writing books that would inspire millions, too. In fact, there have been several stories told of how “bums” literally went to the library to get out of the cold and ended up using that time to read. To better themselves. And they wound up finding solutions that would turn their lives around and ultimately help them not only “survive,” but prosper. The point is often made that it was the ACTION of applying what was learned to achieve the success, but isn’t it worth celebrating that the same education that enabled that success is available to all of us? Right down the street, in many cases?

I was just there with my son and I was amazed at how they now have Kindle Fires that families can check out that have all kinds of interactive learning tools and such. Heck, I was dazzled a few years ago when they started offering digital downloads of books and periodicals that you could get, from your library onto your phone or tablet, without even leaving the house. That they now make technology available to those who need it, and might not otherwise be able to afford it, is pretty doggone cool as far as I am concerned.

The resources are plentiful and they’re yours for the borrowing. You’ll find your local library is peaceful and quiet…and rarely is it crowded!

You’ve already paid for it, so are you really maximizing this amazing asset?

You want weapons? We’re in a library. Books are the best weapon in the world. This room’s the greatest arsenal we could have. Arm yourself!” – Doctor Who, Tooth and Claw

 

 

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