I can approach The Desk and request ancient newspapers or magazines that have
been bound into large books. Only a reference librarian is allowed to pass the locked door and ascend the narrow winding staircase
to the secret chamber where they are stored. The crackling yellowed documents are presented to me, and I am allowed to search
through the fragile pages of the past.
Within this collection of ideas, inspiration, and wisdom, enticing wonders
wait to be discovered. A reprint of an old Geneva Bible filled with spidery print and pictures made from woodcuts. A dictionary
so overflowing with words that it requires a pedestal. A dry volume written by some forgotten scholar of the nineteenth century,
its pages never opened and still uncut on the edges. Science fiction tales that were written before man walked in the Sea
of Tranquility. Victorian fantasy, out of print volumes, and out of date atlases.
They all waited for me, creating moods and memories that tied me to the written
page. But the books on those magical shelves were exchanged for modern best sellers. The structures that held the libraries
of my youth have morphed into cheerful, well-lit, buildings full of open spaces. Massive walls were replaced with storefront
windows that allow sunlight to wash over the neat rows of modern shelving. Parents bring their children for animated story
times filled with songs and dancing. Card catalogs exist only in computer memory, and shelf space is given to audio books,
movies, and music. Traditional books can still be checked out, but they can also simply be download at home onto a computer.
Answering the needs of our troubled economy, libraries have embraced new roles. They are now a resource for job seekers providing
free Internet service, resume writing, and job counseling.
I would not expect libraries to return to the time when leather volumes filled
dim corridors. Still, I do miss the aura of those old libraries where I could get lost in the twisting corridors and lose
myself in the pages of a book.
msnbc.com video: Libraries lend a hand in tough times
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/31237988#31237988
