Walk a Mile in My Shoes Wednesday: Children's Librarian Megan Williams

Remember Walk a Mile in My Shoes Wednesday posts? I haven't done them for about a month because of traveling and holidays, but they're back! :)

This week I want you to meet my friend Megan. She was in youth group at the church I attended a few years ago, and that's how I really met her. (I've known her forever, but I didn't really KNOW her until then.) Now she's grown and married and working at the children's library in the town where we grew up.

(Megan reading to a Story Hour group)

She is surrounded by books every day, and other than coffee, I can't think of a more perfect way to spend any given day! As soon as I heard she'd taken that job, I knew she was going to be an amazing children's librarian. I remember all the hours I spent in the library when I was a kid, and in fact, two of my good friends who are still an active part of my life today were friends I met at that very library in Story Hour when I was four. Now Megan heads up the Story Hour program (and much more) and is probably watching other lifelong friendships form before her very eyes!

I know from her social media posts that Megan is also very passionate about libraries in general and she wants people to know how important and relevant they still are, even though so much has changed in the book/technology world in the last couple of decades.

So today we get to walk a mile in her shoes...the shoes that take her to the land of books every day.

1. Libraries are still relevant!

Obviously you know that technology has evolved in pretty major ways over the last few years, but that hasn't made the library obsolete. In fact, they've adapted in ways that allow them to best serve their communities. Computers are available for patrons to use in most (if not all) public libraries in the nation. There actually are still people who don't have a home computer or internet access, so having a service like this provided by the library gives them opportunities to apply for jobs or chat with people they wouldn't otherwise be able to reach. It also allows them to stay current on information they need to know! Being an informational community hub is one of the most important roles that a library plays, and it does so by adapting to patron need.

2. Libraries aren't just for work and research; they're for fun, too!

We all know libraries have books and magazines, but did you know they also have audio books, DVDs, and CDs too? Many libraries are also circulating things like console video games and single-loaded game tablets for kids. They also have a huge amount of online resources available for patrons. (Most libraries have an online database of their materials, so you can see what they have without ever leaving home!)

3. Libraries love kids!

Megan is a children's librarian, and she wants people to know how much her staff loves seeing kids fall in love with the library. She remembers using it when she was in elementary school and now that she gets to see how it works from the other side of the desk, she feels she's come full circle. That is one of the coolest parts about her job, she says. She loves seeing kids get as excited today as she did when she was their age, and she hopes they'll continue to utilize the library in the same ways she has throughout her life.

4. If you aren't using the library, what's stopping you?

Did you know tax dollars fund the public libraries? Take full advantage of the great service provided by the taxes you pay! (But maybe don't mention to the librarian that your tax dollars are paying her salary...it's not on their top ten list of favorite things to hear from a frustrated patron.) Megan says there really is something fun for everyone in the library, including programs for all ages that are sometimes just for fun and sometimes teach valuable life skills. If you don't have a library card, she urges you to get one. And if you do have a card but it's lost in your wallet, go to the library and learn about the amazing opportunities available to you!

Megan loves her job and loves every library where she's ever worked. She says the job (like any job) can have its frustrating and exhausting moments, but it's still rewarding to be a public servant. And as a side note, if you have to come to the library with an issue like a fine or late book, just try to remember that on any given day, dozens of others have walked up to that desk with similar issues, and the library workers are doing their best to do their jobs and make people happy!

** Side note from me: she's right about the library having more than just books! After I published my first book, the public library allowed me to have a book signing in their community room, and I appreciated that! It was a great way to meet up with people from my hometown! And a few years later, I went back to that same room to hear an author speak...and it was a free event! Later this year, I'm scheduled to teach some classes through a public library program, and I'm looking forward to that. So even if you aren't a read-a-book-a-day kind of person, check out the other things the library has to offer! 

Thanks, Megan, for teaching us about the great opportunities at the library. I'm so excited a whole new group of kids gets to grow up learning the love of books from you!

To see all the Walk a Mile in My Shoes Wednesday posts, go here!