By Cheryl Ryan
I really love libraries. I didn’t realize how much I missed it until they reopened our local branch after being closed for two years. Just walking in feels like home.
I don’t remember going as a very young child. But my memories of the bookmobile (not quite a library but close) are vivid as an elementary school student. I remember when it pulled onto our street and I waited in line to climb the stairs of the retrofitted bus. And then it was my turn to select books from the shelves. I also loved taking my kids to story time and watching as they carefully selected the books they would borrow for the week.
I didn’t enjoy them nearly much as a teenager or while in college. There was always someone shushing me just when I had something extraordinary to tell my friends. And during college, it was usually under duress since I’d procrastinated far too long and had to spend countless hours trying to finish a huge paper making it look like I’d been working on it for months.