Lights out!

WHOOPS! The lights went out just before a Toddler program recently, due to a blown transformer. I opened the blinds in the program room and waited a couple of minutes to see if power would be restored. While I was standing and waiting, one of my toddlers walked over to my chair, patted it determinedly, and tried to say, "Sit! Sit!", but it came out like, "Shi, shi." Then she walked over to the door of the program room and tried to close the door, saying, "Clo, clo." Her mother explained to me that her little girl, Alina, wanted me to close the door (to a darkened room), sit in my chair, and begin the program. Little Alina was adamant about having her library time. I was touched by her enthusiasm, and urged on by the caregivers. So we all walked out to the main floor where there were partial lights still on, and we had our books, rhymes, and songs where everyone could hear. The little ones were really focused and happy, even with the disruption. And even without the musical instruments which are a usual part of their activities. It was a delightful, serendipitous experience!

Silent Hug

Yesterday, at my Baby Time program for children ages 12-24 months, I got down on the floor with the children, at the end of the program, and began handing out board books from a crate. One little guy, who is just barely able to walk and cannot yet talk, found his way next to me, put his little arms around me, and leaned his head softly into my shoulder. He stayed there for a couple of heart-melting moments. No words were needed. It was one of the biggest affirmations I have experienced since I began doing library programs for very young children.

Book Review

THE LEANIN' DOG (J Fic) by K.A. Nuzum

This is a moving story about 11 yr. old Dessa Dean's struggle to recover from the shock of her mother's recent death, and the friendship she slowly forges with a stray dog. Both Dessa Dean and the dog are injured, needy, and afraid. Dessa Dean hides her fears from her well-meaning father and tries to remain self-reliant each day when he leaves their isolated cabin to find food. When a skittish dog limps through the snow toward the cabin one day, Dessa Dean's heart softens and she yearns to nurture the creature. But it takes perseverance and her father's support to earn the frightened dog's trust. As that trust gradually develops, so does Dessa Dean's confidence and hope for the future. Like Wilder's Little House in the Big Woods, this tender tale unfolds in a simple, rustic setting where humble lives toil, love, and, ultimately, heal. Nuzum's LEANIN' DOG has all of the earmarks of a contemporary classic that is destined to touch the hearts of those who read it.

BETTER

I just finished the book, Better, and was inspired by this work by a surgeon (Atul Gawande) who is striving to find solutions to challenges in the medical field. But the book reaches beyond medicine and speaks to any of us who want to effect positive change in the work we do. In the last chapter of the book, Gawande offers "five suggestions for how one might make a worthy difference." The five suggestions are: 1) Ask an unscripted question, 2) Don't complain, 3) Count something, 4) Write something, and 5) Change. The last paragraph of the book pulls these suggestions all together in way that anyone can understand, appreciate, and possibly move forward with. It reads, "So find something new to try, something to change. Count how often you succeed and how often you fail. Write about it. Ask people what they think. See if you can keep the conversation going." It is with that spirit that I began and continue to write this blog.