On Libraries

Hey, welcome April!

I'm writing this blog because I came across something on Tumblr, reblogged by a friend, that piqued my interest. I'm still not used to reading magazines online but I'm trying to make it a habit for when I cannot fully commit to books. I find it more challenging, reading online, possibly because I have gotten so used to the convenience of social media, but also because it just feels so impermanent. I used to read all sorts of physical magazines growing up, this does not feel the same at all. Plus, I do not know where to store these sites conveniently in a way where my browser doesn't have to eat so much RAM (and I personally am not a huge fan of the multi-tab look). This is an attempt to archive these links, I guess, and some thoughts that came with them after I read them.

"The work isn’t glamorous, but it’s sacred: tending to the restless dead of knowledge so the living can keep learning."
-Nikki DeMarco, from The Library is Full of Ghosts (and I’m Not Talking About Hauntings)

Back to the article I read. Let's start with this: I have not been in a library in years. Life is funny like that sometimes considering that I practically grew up in my schools' libraries. Reading through this made me feel so nostalgic about the time I've spent on there. I miss it, dearly. It's not the same to read something on your digital reader or on the monitor of your computer as it is with going to a library to read, and being in a space utterly dedicated to learning. I wish there was more of them here. I wish they were easier to get to. I wish we all get to experience the magic of the library.

Getting to read through this article was a great joy as a former denizen of libraries. The prose was cozy, but not in a way where it completely romanticizes the place. It talks of struggles and perspectives I was not privy to as someone who haunted libraries solely as a reader and a student. It brought back memories of little me, of a turbulent time, of when reading was one of the few solaces I had in the world. I don't think I would dare imagine a different story for my life if I had not spent so much of my time reading then.

Perhaps, it's time to pay a visit again. I know it has changed as much as I did, but I know it will have books on things that I have endless questions about. I know the librarians are always going to be there too, fonts of knowledge that they are. I know the ghosts will be there too, quite literally because I live in Southeast Asia. Who knows, I might even find the ghost of the voracious reader I use to be, and I might even ask it how to do it all over again.

I guess in a way, the library's ghost haunt me too. Reminding me of a time where learning can be done on our own terms, on our own time. No rush, or expectations.