In fact, I can get a brainwave at midnight, log in to the system and five minutes later know that my book will be enroute in the morning. If I can’t make it to the library, I can order books from home. Once they brought a book in for me all the way from Ontario! If it’s not in the Parkland system, they take the search province-wide and if none of the libraries in Alberta have it, they will cast their net even further. If they don’t have the book themselves, they use the inter-library loan system to bring the book in from another local branch. No matter what I’m looking for, they can get it for me. (Still do!) And let’s not forget the author visits they arranged. Thanks to Inez and her staff, we had a rich assortment of resources to supplement my sons’ education. There is no way that my pocketbook could have provided our family with all the amazing books my library made available with the click of a button. My library was a lifesaver when I was homeschooling my sons. (Okay, that might be a slight overstatement. I love my library. I could not live without my library. They rejected many locations because of the lack of a good local library. I remember reading about a young family looking for the perfect piece of land to build their dream home.
And I always left that first visit with an armful of friends to cozy up with over a cup of tea. I instantly felt more at home once I had my new library card nestled in its spot in my wallet. Although it was exciting to discover new places, it was always a little lonely off the start so I was always sure to schedule a trip to the library soon after we moved in. We moved a lot when we were first married.