By DiAnn Mills @DiAnnMills
The history of libraries dates to 2500-2600 BC on clay tablets. That shows libraries are enduring and of value to civilization.
When we walk into a library, we encounter the smell of books and the hushed sounds of those quietly enjoying them. Readers are swept away into a world of information, history, science, biographies, music, stories from all genres, and more.
Libraries are a world within a world, a sacred place to dream, learn, and explore.
As a child, I developed a sense of belonging beneath the covers of a book. Reading or listening to books refines our thinking and observation skills. The cost is free, the knowledge priceless. Everyone belongs in an environment of knowledge, showing us culture is formed, shaped, and remembered by what we read.
Writers treasure the goldmines of research.
We are inspired to research correct data to ensure our fiction or nonfiction come alive, ensuring a unique voice.
Beyond research, libraries offer something equally valuable: space to create in the quiet sweetness of the imagination zone. Nonfiction forms its outline, and fiction chooses the manner to make stories real.
The librarians
We treasure the expert librarians who save us hours by escorting us directly to the information we need. They also help us organize our thoughts by asking questions and refining the focus of our writing. Don’t forget to thank them!
The community
Book clubs and community-minded people, young and old, meet to explore and grow as individuals and a society. Libraries are a safe haven for those who want to reflect on themselves, the world around them, and how to improve our surroundings.
Time moves forward
Libraries adjust to readers and adapt to technology. For those who want to hold and smell a book, there are plenty. For those who prefer the digital age, e-books, audiobooks, music, movies, and online courses and research are available. Their purpose remains steadfast, but their methods change to accommodate an ever-changing world. Libraries are friends we can rely on.
As a writer, I’ve learned library resources bring depth and spiritual growth to my books. For writers who view writing as a call to ministry, libraries stand on the foundation of truth, purpose, wisdom, and insight. When we choose to inhale all that libraries have to offer, we are raising the bar on our own excellence by how we weave words into sentences that can have a profound effect on others.
Once you enter a library, take note: you may never be the same.
Share your thoughts on your favorite library in the comments below.
At the age of ten, our family doctor confined me to a life of inactivity due to a heart condition. Library books gifted me with companionship, adventure, fairy tale romances, and happily ever after endings that fueled my hope for a heart-healthy future. Eventually, my parents allowed me to walk to the local library where I would gather an armload of books meant to keep my heart quiet and my doctor reassured.
DiAnn, thank you for this reminder of the gift of libraries. It’s time for me to re-visit my own local library and inhale deeply the smell of my old friends!
I love libraries! The local public library has always been one of my fave spots whatever town or city I live in. My fave library is the British library in London bc I saw the Gutenberg bible there. I taught my kids to love books and my oldest daughter is now a librarian and my daughter in law is getting her degree 😊.
I love libraries! Some of my favorite memories as a child are going to the library with my mother. I was able to read every horse book our local library had. The Black Stallion books were my favorites.
Ah! The book mobile! Great memories. Loved the plastic wrapped books. I’d check out the max I could carry. Now I use our library’s audible app, also free. Great topic!
My local, small-town library is within short walking distance from our residence. My wife and I love to walk there to check out books.
Author
Thanks, Tim. There’s something magical about a library. So glad yours is close by.
My favorite childhood book memory goes back to being four years old. Once a month, the bookmobile came to our little community of some 500 souls. Mom allowed us to check out as many books as we could carry. That was our responsibility. So, in high anticipation, I never got tired as I carried an armload (both arms) of books up a dusty, gravel, mile-long, mostly hillside road. When the bookmobile came again, I had practically memorized not only my books, but also my brother’s and sister’s.
BTW, I’m looking forward to seeing you at Blue Ridge in a few weeks!
Author
Hi Peggy, I love that story, and I can see it too! Looking forward to catching up at Blue Ridge!
I go to my local public library twice a week for a knit/crochet group. Cheap therapy and we work on the world’s problems. I also have a Little Free Library in my yard for my neighborhood.
Author
Gail, I love how you solve the world’s problems. And Little Free Library is a powerful organization.
I was a reader from early on. In the 4th grade, the school was just a block from the nearest public library and our teacher took us on a field trip to it so we could all get applications for library cards. From then on, I hung out in the library several times a week. One of the librarians took notice, and of the type of books I was reading. She would pick out new book arrivals and “reserve” those so I could read them first. Lot’s of good memories there.
Author
Tim, that observant librarian helped form you for the future!
My favorite from a purely aesthetic view is the library at the Biltmore Estate in NC. Otherwise, any library is my favorite. I love the smell, the opportunity, the adventures, the laughs, the knowledge, and the escape that permeates the air as soon as you walk in. I especially love the smell in any Rare Books room. Those old pages are rich with history and nearly lost treasures.
A favorite childhood memory is walking out of the library with a long stack of books in my arm and anticipating the stories within.
Thank you for giving me a smile today.
Author
Thanks Karen, I will remember the adventures within the pages of those books. I loved words and I’m still carrying on with the same tradition!
Amen , Amen and Amen!
As a part of our Library Ministry at church- it is so incredibly satisfying. Our readers of all ages, make it so special to me.
There’s something that a library has , which nothing compares!
After over 50 years in the medical field, God put me where I needed to be- the library.
Thank you DiAnn for sharing this beautiful insight!
Author
Thanks, Joyce, I had no idea you’d been in the medical field. As part of the library ministry at your church, you still are a part of the medical field – spiritual rejuvenation for the soul!
I loved this line: “As a child, I developed a sense of belonging beneath the covers of a book.”
Author
Thanks, Jenny. Reading is our past, present, and future!