There’s no better place I’d rather spend a wintry Saturday afternoon than lost in the stacks of my local library. Hiding out in the library is a great escape from the troubles of daily life, even for a few hours. Walking in the door takes me back to a time when the possibilities of learning and humanity seemed limitless. When I’m in the library, I’m reminded of the wonder and excitement of learning and the noble achievements of human civilization. It’s easy to forget about all those good things during when I’m preoccupied by all the bad news of the world.
Obviously, the most wonderful thing is the library is an actual physical place I can visit; not a digital matrix I make believe I’m traversing. Instead of relying on an algorithm and looking at a display, I stroll along and discover new authors and topics I never heard of that piqué my interest. Digital data storage and the cloud have their advantages but getting lost in the stacks is an entirely superior experience to just sitting at a desk, looking at a screen, and that’s what I love about it. Going to the library is a sensory experience.
Going to the library always reminds me: Some of the best books I’ve read and most important things I’ve learned, I’ve come across by accident.
copyright 2017 Christopher Donahue