Yesterday afternoon we had a nice trip to the library.  It’s been a while since I’ve been, thanks to a new efficient system I set up.  I started ordering the books I want online, and have them sent to one of the branches.  My husband always takes the van to work on Sundays, and passes within five minutes of one of the branches, so he started picking up the books waiting for me every Sunday.  This has cut down on the time and gas I spend getting our books, but since this branch isn’t going to be open on Sundays anymore, I needed to pick up the books in person yesterday.  From now on, I’ll have them sent to a different branch that’s convenient for him that will still be open on Sundays.

I always enjoy taking the kids to the library – it’s an easy outing that everyone really enjoys.  The kids all signed up for the summer reading program (I have mixed feelings about reading programs, but that’s another topic), and then got their piles of books to check out.  I had heard about a couple of free outdoor presentations of Shakespeare plays that will be this Thursday and next, and thought it would be nice to take the kids, so I checked for a book/audio version/video of the play to prepare them for it. (This morning I discovered that The Tempest, which is what I got materials for, is next week, and Comedy of Errors is this week.  Oh, well.)  They have a nice play area in the children’s section when the baby and toddler played, and I also picked up a dvd for our monthly family movie night.   

When I first came in and was returning our books as I came in, the librarian started talking to me, and then told me that she wanted to give two free tshirts (that they sell each summer in conjuction with the summer reading program) to my kids, and asked if it was okay.  I asked why she was giving them away, and she said earlier in the day someone had bought two, and told her to give them to two kids who came in. 

I don’t know how we ended up being the family whose kids got them, because it was after school hours when we went (usually I go early in the day when it’s quieter) and the library was hopping with kids.  Later when I checked out, I saw and thanked her again, and asked what made her choose us.  She said she didn’t know, the whole day she was waiting to give them out and as soon as she saw us come around the corner, she wanted us to have them. 

I’ve seen this librarian a number of times before, and she always looks somewhat dour.  I’ve always been pleasant to her but she was so unresponsive that if I didn’t see she was like that with everyone, I would have thought she disliked me.  But yesterday, she was full of smiles when the kids thanked her and she later saw them wearing them (the boys I gave them to put them on when we got to the parking lot, and she happened to be leaving work and walking to her car so she saw them).  

I commented to my kids on what a nice thing it was that she did that, and they all agreed.  Then one of my daughters said, “It seems things like that always happen to us.”  I don’t know if nice things happen to us any more than to anyone else, or we just notice them more.  But it does seem that we meet nice people everywhere we go, who not infrequently go out of their way for us!

Avivah