Why I Love My Library

Libraries have always held a special place in my heart, thanks to my grandmother. Every week, she would take my sister and I to the library to pick out some books. My grandmother and my mother were both avid readers, and it was a frequent occurrence to have us all sitting together reading books all at the same time.

You see, I grew up in foster care (the above mentioned family was one of my foster families), and books were a way for me to escape the realities of my own life - which were frequently sad, confusing, and even terrifying.

Reading a book allowed me to be someone else for as long as it took me to read a book. I could be a detective, a regular kid, even someone who got to go to faraway places and see exciting new things. Almost every avid reader feels this way, even if they have a wonderful life - like they can take a journey to places they may not be able to see in real life.

For me, it was also a way to learn things I didn't have an opportunity to otherwise learn. I am constantly learning about new subjects - I teach myself, just with books and online articles. I'm a whiz at Google Search, mostly because I learned how to use the catalog to find books at the library first, so I know how to use search terms the way they make the most sense.

When I became a parent, I decided to carry on the tradition my grandmother shared with me - to take my children to the library. Though we don't go every week (life is a lot more hectic now than it was then, I guess), we do go as often as we can. And hopefully soon we can get back to our weekly visits to the library ;) Each of my children has had their own library cards since they were infants, and I look forward to them sharing a love of reading with THEIR children, just like my grandmother did with me.

So... What's YOUR story? Why do YOU #loveyourlibrary?