A Window into the Future

It was cold but sunny Saturday morning. I came across this one room library in a small town, Shutesbury, MA and, of course, had to stop. It was closed. I walked around the outside taking a few pictures, my daughters reading books in the car, very accustomed now to my picture taking habits. I knew I would need to re-visit in the summer, knowing it is hard to catch a small town library open, get inside for interior shots, and by then the landscaping would have revived for some nicer exterior shots. I was about to leave when a woman walked out the front door - the librarian! She invited me in. She said they were technically closed for story-time, but no bother. Inside was more charming than the Tudor revival exterior. Wood on every surface: wood floor, wood paneling, wood ceiling! In one corner were several children, all under 6 or so, listening to a story, parents sitting behind. 

Many might question the future of libraries, but perhaps this is a window into why they are still relevant. These children likely have a plethora of entertainment options, but they clearly enjoyed getting out of the house, looking into the eyes of a story teller, and hearing a story in person. If not in a library, where?

I captured the photograph above, thinking mainly about the window pattern, since my photographic interest is usually in the architectural details. Before I took the picture, I knew the sunny day outside would burn out any detail, so did not think the picture would be of any value. Only later was I struck with the Norman Rockwell character of it, despite the bright exterior, and it has inspired me to start looking for more of this kind of photograph - a photograph that tells a story of its own.

The librarian was very nice, and shared with me plans they are making for building a new library, 3 times the size of this one. So, this library, though in a very small town, has it's sights on fund raising for a new home and has garnered quite a bit of support already. It is nice to see that, at least here, someone still has visions of Saturday morning story-time on a cold winter's morning.