I regularly (ish) use a tag on my Instagram account – http://www.instagram.com/ludd72 – labelled #librarylife to mark book covers that I’ve photo’d, or displays, or even things peripherally connected to the concept of the library like pins or signage. I also use it for things in my home life that also fit the bill, like pictures of my book shelves.
What it rarely captures are the satisfying moments of working in a library where I make a connection, introduce someone to a new author, work with charities, or just make a shy child smile. Stopping to talk to someone who makes visiting us a part of their daily or weekly routine can put a warm glow in my chest. So can helping someone track down the best organisation to help them with an enquiry.
I love working in libraries. I may sigh sometimes at things that happen, or the way someone chooses to interact with me or my staff, but there’s a core of helping people that is immensely satisfying.
I see a wide cross-section of local life, and generally feel part of the local community – I feel very lucky to be able to work the way that I do. The added bonus is that it is a reasonably active job, mostly on my feet all day, so I even get a bit of exercise into the bargain.
Why am I saying all this? I suppose mostly to put an equalising spin on those posts where I make veiled grumblings or talk about the more outlandish incidents that occur. They’re all part of the fun of working, but so are the gentle things too.
TimMaidment.Com 