In honor of this week's overlap between National Poetry Month and National Library Week, here is a poem from Nikki Giovanni that celebrates not only the space and sensation of libraries but also the librarians who work in them and who often persist in children's memories. Today is National Library Workers Day, so we're specifically celebrating the staff of the Camden Public Library. Giovanni recalls here the "welcoming smile" of her librarian, who stands by the gateway into the limitless world created by books. You have not been able to see our smiles behind the masks for the past year, but we hope that you have felt the warmth and welcoming nature of our efforts to continue to provide services to our community. I can't sing the praises of my colleagues enough, and I hope their faces resonate with you as you read Nikki Giovanni's poem. If you'd like to support the valuable role that our staff plays in transforming lives and strengthening our community, please give at librarycamden.org/donate.
My First Memory (Of Librarians)
This is my first memory:
A big room with heavy wooden tables that sat on a creaky
wood floor
A line of green shades—bankers' lights—down the center
Heavy oak chairs that were too low or maybe I was simply
too short
For me to sit in and read
So my first book was always big
In the foyer up four steps a semi-circle desk presided
To the left side the card catalogue
On the right newspapers draped over what looked like
a quilt rack
Magazines face out from the wall
The welcoming smile of my librarian
The anticipation in my heart
All those books—another world—just waiting
At my fingertips.
- Nikki Giovanni
From Acolytes