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Test Driving the New Library
My mother-in-law test drove a new car this week, the volvo cx60. At 75, she is looking for a sleeker car, and judging by the impressed look on my husband´s face, it fits the bill. It has autonomous parking and built-in safety cameras. A twinkle in his eye, my husband whispered in my ear, ¨it has a turbo button!
I really appreciate how she
hasn´t slowed down since retiring, making the most of every invitation to travel and every opportunity to learn something new. She takes her computer classes, and thinks of herself as rather high tech with her fancy Apple phone. She skips no beats as she gallivants across any terrain, digital map in hand and tickets prebooked. There´s just one hangup that could make or break this car deal. It lacks a CD player. Why is this such a big deal? Because she adores the library.
As an American icon, the library is emblematic of freedom. It´s an icon that seeks to equalize all people, regardless of class. It´s a town hall in which all are welcome with their ideas and their needs can be attended to by the gentle person behind the desk.
Living in a big city, I long ago abandoned the idea of going to the library because traffic just wasn´t worth it. Who needs that when time is money, and Amazon delivers? She, however lives in a comfortably rural town and the library is her favorite place. In…
