Reflection Ch.1, Portable MLIS, "Stepping Back and Looking Forward: Reflections on the Foundations of Libraries and Librarianship," Richard E. Rubin

The importance of libraries is indisputable. Evidence of this is reflected by the sheer magnitude of library history. After all, libraries have been around for approximately 5,000 years. Of the multitude of purposes that libraries have, several stand out as undeniably pertinent. First, people connect with books, either through solving a quest for information or on a purely aesthetic note. Second, libraries create life-long learners ( and readers) due to intellectual freedom-being able to read whatever one chooses. Third, libraries assist us by making connections to other cultures, thus helping us understand and communicate with one another. Finally, libraries not only help us attain answers to questions, but aid in the production of more questions so that learning is a never-ending process.

Recently, during a celebration of National Library Week, I lead elementary students on a journey that proved to enlighten them on the topics of library history and how libraries help worlds connect and make the world a better place. First, I asked students how long they thought libraries had been around. This resulted in widely varying responses. When told the actual number of years, students were in awe. We also talked about such ideas as libraries not being free, libraries being for the rich, libraries being available to churches and the necessity of libraries before children were required to attend school. Then, students, in small groups, contributed their ideas on a large poster referring to how libraries help the world connect and make it a better place. The students were able to come up with all of the concepts mentioned in the first paragraph and more!

Because of the evolving nature of libraries, they assist society in meeting many needs. Recently (1997), Bill Gates was instrumental in library history by helping libraries "get connected" to the Internet. This opened up considerably the idea that libraries are undeniably essential. During poor economic times such as these, library usage has actually increased and more people have library cards now than since the time this information started being recorded. Free library services such as Internet usage, have helped citizens find jobs, communicate with others and connect to worlds beyond what was ever thought possible. The importance of libraries as information centers and gateways to the world is definitely crucial and undeniably beneficial to our society.