Thinking about the coming year...

Well, we have started another school year. I haven't done much posting, I have been doing a lot of thinking. I have been thinking about the direction I need to go in the library, but also about the future of libraries in general, and specifically school libraries. Several news items have caught my attention, most of which you have probably seen. The most searing one was this about the Cushing library near Boston. There was also a post by Doug Johnson about format bigotry. Check out his slides and previous posts. All this has led to a slight feeling of depression. I don't think this is necessarily a bad thing. I am in mourning for what libraries used to be. The libraries that I loved. Libraries where people were reading books, studying, engaged in intellectual pursuits rather than playing video games, watching videos, and in general doing things that are most definitely NOT intellectual. This other librarian says it better than I can.

If you have read Regina before, you know that I have been turning over in my mind the mission and purpose of libraries. I truly agree with Mr. Wisner that we need to restore a sense of purpose to libraries. I have heard numerous people say that libraries need to be "meeting places" or community spaces, and to a certain extent that is true. However, they should be spaces for meetings of the minds, not the wrestlers. There are other, better venues for that. When faced with competition, it is easy to try to become all things to all people, but that this is a mistake. We are not all things, we are a place to learn, to gain knowledge, to reflect and grow as people. Above all, we are the preservers of culture. I begin to think that it is this last role that will save a few of us, and give hope to the future. Just as when the barbarians finally overran Rome, and it was the monestaries that kept knowledge alive, there will be a few libraries that continue to keep the eternal flame of knowledge burning while the world lives in the darkness of ignorance, apathy, and instant gratification. A link to a possible answer is still not an answer.

In order not to leave you without hope, here is a link to someone who is redefining purpose for the libraries in her district. Check out the Top Shelf on the Mesquite libraries new mission and purpose.