the room of requirement
Over 40 years ago, Missoulians aloof like us started absent about the approaching of the Missoula Accessible Library. Our library represents that dream and has served us able-bodied for decades. Now we accept the befalling to dream about the approaching of our library – not aloof for the abutting 40 years, but for the abutting 100.
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We apperceive for assertive that a lot is activity to change for libraries in 100 years, but one affair won’t change: Libraries aren’t about technology, or alike advice – libraries are about people, about community.
People in the abutting decades, and into the abutting aeon – our accouchement and grandchildren and great-grandchildren – will still charge a abode to gather, to explore, to imagine. They will still charge a abode area they can amount themselves out, area they can accommodated added people, area they can appoint in democracy, and area they can accompany up their own children.
Maybe you, like me, came to the library with your grandfathering and apparent a abode area the librarian advised you like an important person.
Maybe it’s area you had your aboriginal date. Maybe it’s area you had your aboriginal kiss.
Maybe you got your aboriginal job there, or maybe you came there to attending for a job.
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Maybe it was the aboriginal abode you came back you accustomed in the United States, to abstraction for a citizenship test, or to convenance a new language.
Maybe it’s area you met Harry Potter, or Ramona Quimby, or Anne Shirley, or Captain Underpants.
Maybe this is area you apparent big red dogs, or actual athirst caterpillars, or abstract spiders who are acceptable writers and acceptable friends.
Maybe this is area you begin out that you weren’t abandoned in the world, area you accomplished that there were added bodies like you – in the architecture and in the books.
The accessible library is the Wardrobe, it’s belvedere 9 3/4, Alice’s aerial hole, James’s behemothic peach. It can booty you anywhere you appetite to go, and to places you can’t alike brainstorm yet.
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The accessible library is the Room of Requirement. It’s every abode we charge it to be – because it is the one abode area we can footfall into added worlds as we amount out our abode in our own.
Two-thirds of American adults own a library card. Every day, accessible libraries broadcast about as abounding items as FedEx. And business owners and advisers use accessible libraries to abutment their baby businesses 2.8 actor times anniversary month.
Six times added bodies appointment accessible libraries anniversary year than appear academy and able football, basketball, baseball, and hockey amateur – combined.
Public libraries accept a college approval appraisement than baseball, Congress, or angel pie. And if angel pie isn’t your thing, accede this: there are added accessible libraries in the U.S. than there are McDonald's.
Our library welcomes 1,725 visitors anniversary day. To put that in perspective, that is over 610,000 visits anniversary year – over 400,000 added than abounding Griz home football amateur aftermost season.
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You can analysis out aggregate from books to laptops to garden seeds. You can adjustment your bike, use accessible affair space, appear adventure hour, accompany a book group, see a adopted film, actualize article in the Makerspace, or coil up with a acceptable book.
Forty years ago, bodies aloof like us – who cared about the library, who cared about the community, who cared about us – got calm and congenital our library.
Now, we get to abide absent about how we can accomplish it bigger, and better, and focused consistently on Missoulians, alike the ones we’ll never know.
Julie Edwards writes from Missoula.
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![Trio Entering Room of Requirement Clip [1080] - YouTube Trio Entering Room of Requirement Clip [1080] - YouTube](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/6dIVKtBOxK4/maxresdefault.jpg)
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