I have a library a kilometre away from my home which is such a great thing for me, being an avid reader. I take a walk there every two to three days during my lunch breaks to see if there are any new books to borrow. I should probably stop that as the rate I can finish reading cannot keep up with the rate at which I’m borrowing them. In any case, I’m thrilled to have a library at my doorstep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was at the library a few days ago when I saw a librarian attending to an elderly lady who looked to be in her mid to late 70s. She was trying to get a new library card so she could borrow books. I overheard their exchange. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Librarian: “Do you have an email address?”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Elderly lady: “No.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Librarian: “Do you have a telephone number?”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Elderly lady: “Yes.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Librarian: “Do you have a mobile smartphone?”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Elderly lady: “No.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Librarian: “Oh, I was thinking if you had a smartphone you could just download the mobile library app to borrow books so you wouldn’t have to pay $3 for the replacement card.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On hearing this, the elderly lady appeared hesitant and then said she would come back another day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At this point, my suspicions about this lady being in a difficult economic situation were confirmed. When I heard her say she had no email address or smartphone, I was thinking, how does one not have either of these in this day and age in a country like Australia? Of course there are people who fall on hard times so I thought she may be one of them. It was also the way she was asking the librarian, in her raspy voice, what type of books there were and how she sounded lost that made me think she hasn’t been in touch with society for awhile. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was about to head over to say I’d pay the $3 for the elderly lady when I heard the librarian tell her to wait for a moment and she then went into an office. At this point I thought the library must have gone to ask her supervisor if the $3 could be waived. I was right – two minutes later, I heard the librarian tell the elderly lady that she had gotten permission from her supervisor to waive the replacement fee. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
I’m glad the librarian could see that the lady was down and out, and needed some help. Most of us think nothing of $3 but this amount of money was the key for this woman to access books which in turn could be crucial to her mental and emotional well-being. Books open up worlds and can be a source of comfort – at least they are to me. Amidst the rising cost of so many things, at least library books are something we can still access for free. Admittedly, this is funded by my tax dollars and the council fees I pay! <\/p>\n\n\n\n
But I’ll never again think of $3 being just $3. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I have a library a kilometre away from my home which is such a great thing for me, being an avid reader. I take a walk there every two to three days during my lunch breaks to see if there … Continue reading