Release those Books
After volunteering to organize the church library...
I spent my first hour going through books and media on one short shelf.
With books—years don't change the characteristics of what we mean by a book. Pages, bindings, typefaces may alter from one era to another. If the paper is of poor quality it may yellow and smell a bit musty. If the binding is wretched the individual pages may loosen and fall out. I have several pocket books held together with a rubber band.
With media, life moves at a quickened pace and yesterday's way of storing and showing media fades into oblivion. Newness waits for its turn and then it, too, gives way to the next—better choice. We found old VCR tapes—but who still owns the proper equipment necessary to show the tapes? Zip files of lectures —a dinosaur.
The Cd's and DVDs remain, but for how long? An entire shelf of media fits on one high volume flash drive.
Old Bibles—stored away— beg to see the light. I found one small—two inch by four inch— 1876 bible in poor condition. The tiny print, probably six or seven point, reminded me of the print found in the one volume Oxford Unabridged Dictionary. Required necessity, a magnifying glass.
I like handling a book that's old. It gives me a sense of continuity. Some people trace their ancestors back generations and create family trees. My family tree only traces back to my grandparents. They all left Poland and Russia. Whoever didn't emigrate died. The towns they came from decimated by the Second World War.
Holding an old book or reading an original document allows me to experience a connection to the past. Years ago, when it was still possible for anyone to see the original depositions from the Salem Witch Trials, I sat at a mahogany desk and waited for a librarian to find my requested volume.
In time a woman brought out a large tome and opened it to the Rebecca Nurse accusation. I recall the sepia colored ink and the difficulty of reading the writing. I only read a few words on each line, but enough to fear for Rebecca Nurse. Even knowing the history and Rebecca's fate I still experienced the trial with trepidation.
Who held those old Bibles? Who prayed the psalms? How many hands turned the pages? They need to be on a shelf with a chance for people to read the words, turn the pages—connect to the past.
Old books that no longer seemed usable were to be jettisoned—but every time I came across an old book I wanted to sit down and read.
There are obvious books that deserve to move on, but others that present problems. If it smells, the edges turn green, or it suffers from a separation with its binding, then it may be ready for the throw away pile.
Maybe I need to take a pragmatic approach. There are only so many shelves so there can only be so many books. Some stay and some go. Going doesn't need to mean a junk heap—perhaps I can collect them in a box and offer them as free books.
Or I can offer the pages for an art project .Bridal dress designer Jennifer Pritchard Couchman was asked by a writer of contemporary fairy tales to create a garment out of book pages.
It took 2500 pages, paper mache, staples, glue, lots of folding, and an incredible imagination to craft the dress. The author, Claire Massey, wore the dress when she read a fairy tale she wrote for the Litfest Festival in Lancaster, England.
With that as an inspiration I need to let go, release my penchant for not throwing out any book and move on with the library project.
I spent my first hour going through books and media on one short shelf.
With books—years don't change the characteristics of what we mean by a book. Pages, bindings, typefaces may alter from one era to another. If the paper is of poor quality it may yellow and smell a bit musty. If the binding is wretched the individual pages may loosen and fall out. I have several pocket books held together with a rubber band.
With media, life moves at a quickened pace and yesterday's way of storing and showing media fades into oblivion. Newness waits for its turn and then it, too, gives way to the next—better choice. We found old VCR tapes—but who still owns the proper equipment necessary to show the tapes? Zip files of lectures —a dinosaur.
The Cd's and DVDs remain, but for how long? An entire shelf of media fits on one high volume flash drive.
Old Bibles—stored away— beg to see the light. I found one small—two inch by four inch— 1876 bible in poor condition. The tiny print, probably six or seven point, reminded me of the print found in the one volume Oxford Unabridged Dictionary. Required necessity, a magnifying glass.
I like handling a book that's old. It gives me a sense of continuity. Some people trace their ancestors back generations and create family trees. My family tree only traces back to my grandparents. They all left Poland and Russia. Whoever didn't emigrate died. The towns they came from decimated by the Second World War.
Holding an old book or reading an original document allows me to experience a connection to the past. Years ago, when it was still possible for anyone to see the original depositions from the Salem Witch Trials, I sat at a mahogany desk and waited for a librarian to find my requested volume.
In time a woman brought out a large tome and opened it to the Rebecca Nurse accusation. I recall the sepia colored ink and the difficulty of reading the writing. I only read a few words on each line, but enough to fear for Rebecca Nurse. Even knowing the history and Rebecca's fate I still experienced the trial with trepidation.
Who held those old Bibles? Who prayed the psalms? How many hands turned the pages? They need to be on a shelf with a chance for people to read the words, turn the pages—connect to the past.
Old books that no longer seemed usable were to be jettisoned—but every time I came across an old book I wanted to sit down and read.
There are obvious books that deserve to move on, but others that present problems. If it smells, the edges turn green, or it suffers from a separation with its binding, then it may be ready for the throw away pile.
Maybe I need to take a pragmatic approach. There are only so many shelves so there can only be so many books. Some stay and some go. Going doesn't need to mean a junk heap—perhaps I can collect them in a box and offer them as free books.
Or I can offer the pages for an art project .Bridal dress designer Jennifer Pritchard Couchman was asked by a writer of contemporary fairy tales to create a garment out of book pages.
It took 2500 pages, paper mache, staples, glue, lots of folding, and an incredible imagination to craft the dress. The author, Claire Massey, wore the dress when she read a fairy tale she wrote for the Litfest Festival in Lancaster, England.
With that as an inspiration I need to let go, release my penchant for not throwing out any book and move on with the library project.
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