Bibliophile.

We took the kids to the library on Saturday.  I warmed my nerdy little heart to see how excited they all were to pick out some books.  Hollis wanted some of the Percy Jackson books, Maggie wanted some of the Little House books, Ivy chose two picture books about chickens, and Loch picked books about trains.  Olivia, having her own card, selected five or six young adult books.  I was also like a kid in a candy store, and instead of the two or three books I planned on searching for, I ended up with a pile of my own.

I have been going to the Neosho library since my family moved here when I was seven.  It used to be in an old church building a few blocks from where it is now.  There were always lots of beautiful rose bushes planted out front and all along the side facing the parking lot.  We'd always go in the side door, to the ground-level basement under the ex-sanctuary.  That's where the childrens' section was located.

I spent many, many a happy hour digging through the racks.  I remember the day I discovered that L. M. Montgomery had written more books about Anne.  Oh, happy day!  It was like having my best friend move in next door.  Ironically, as a child, I wasn't as interested in Anne after she married Gilbert and had children, but now those are some of my favorite books in the series.

I must have read Laura Ingalls Wilder's books a hundred times.  Ma and Pa and Laura, Mary, Grace and Carrie were as real to me as my own family.  I loved My Side of the Mountain and The True Adventures of Charlotte Doyle and Charlotte's Web and The Boxcar Children.  I would read anything I could get my hands on. I read books about paper airplanes, the Black Stallion series, Ferdinand the bull, how to make toys out of cardboard boxes, and...you get the picture.

After choosing the books I wanted, we'd take the windy little stairs up to the adult library section, where the checkout desk was located.  Being a former church, it was a big long room that had pendant lights and tall frosted windows.  There were lots of tall racks and dark oak tables and chairs.  Plus, libraries always have those neat round stepstool things, which we were not allowed to play with, even though they looked fun.

I always checked out ten books, the limit on my childrens' library card.  I'd lug the pile out to the car, and then make myself carsick all the way home, schizophrenically trying to read all the books at one time.  It was not unusual for me to work my way through several of the books at once, instead of reading them one at a time.  I'm a binge-reader.  I was always ready and eager to go back to the library and get more books at the end of three weeks.

I now realize how grateful I am to my mom for taking us to the library so often.  Thanks, Mom!