Why I’m Becoming a Librarian
Quebec Library Week
When I handed in the last godforsaken essay of my undergrad back in December 2022, there was not a single cell in my body that wanted to hear the word “school” or “assignment” for the very long foreseeable future. When my academic advisor emailed me a month later to inform me that I had somehow miscalculated and was missing one singular class, making me ineligible for the major I had originally applied to graduate with, I–instead of sucking it up and completing those final 3 credits part time–simply changed the major on my degree. To be fair, it wasn’t anything crazy–I finished with a Specialization in English Literature instead of an Honours degree. I only tell you this story to illustrate just how resolutely and aggressively done I was with the whole thing.
I started my degree at the beginning of 2019, and had two totally normal, blissful semesters. Obviously, we all know what happened in 2020. And it made learning difficult, and exhausting, and those final two years were a struggle for me. Studying English doesn’t exactly offer the most vast of practical career paths, as I’m sure you can imagine, and in my own experience it mostly just sets you up to pursue further education. Because of this, I had toyed with the idea of a Master’s in English, but ultimately, I knew I didn’t have it in me. Instead, I began job hunting, and decided to see where the wind took me.
I loved what I’d studied, and I wouldn’t do it any differently, but I still didn’t have any concrete career goals. As a kid, I’d fallen in love with books at a young age and took to writing stories on our bulky family computer, and for many years, I had big dreams of being an author. Once I’d grown up a bit and realised this wasn’t the most stable aspiration to follow, I pivoted towards dreams of working in publishing. The trouble with this was that all of the major publishing houses in Canada, and the jobs at said major publishing houses in Canada, were all located in Toronto, and that was quite simply never somewhere I wanted to be.
Somewhere along the way, I found myself ignited by this instinctive need for community. Real community. Community spaces, community services, just–human connection. I don’t know if it was the trauma of Covid, or if it was the rising epidemic of phone addiction and ChatGPT and destructive social media usage, or having to bear witness to literal wars and political injustices unfolding both far away from and close to home every time I checked the news. But my heart was heavy, and I was discouraged. I’d worked a year in digital marketing at this point, and I was really starting to question what I was doing and what I wanted. Did my work really align with my morals or what was important to me? Not really. I’d been hired in a writing role, but the explosion of AI had made the creative aspects of my job nearly non-existent, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that the work I was doing wasn’t helping people, or doing any good for the world. I just wanted to feel like my work mattered. Don’t we all?
I’d certainly envisioned myself as a librarian before. Never strongly enough to really look into how to actually make it happen, but working alongside books all day in a calm, quiet environment was, obviously, very appealing to me. And what are public libraries if not shared community hubs, offering free, open access to knowledge, information, and an array of essential services? A space for students, children, adults, and seniors to gather and learn?
A few months and some letters of recommendation later, I’m now pursuing my Master’s of Information Studies, with the goal of becoming a public librarian. I’m also working a new job at my city’s community centre, where we offer an array of services for those in need, including food assistance for families and support for newcomers to Canada. I’m in the thick of midterm season as I write this, and I’m certainly feeling those heebie-jeebies again, but not nearly as strongly. Though the Horrors of the World still keep me up some nights, I know I’m exactly where I’m meant to be.
All of this is simply to say: public libraries are important to me. And they should be important to you too. Do you have a library card? If you do, I love you. If you don’t, I still love you, but the endurance of this love is dependent on you getting a library card. Luckily for you, it’s just about the best time to do so: October 19th to 25th is the 27th edition of Quebec Public Library Week, and it’s the perfect time to get to know the services and resources that are available to you.
Public libraries offer so much more than just books. Depending on your library’s offerings, you could have access to magazines, films, video games, music, audio books, board games, puzzles, toys, and even electronic devices. They organise programs for patrons of all ages, including story times for children, book clubs for teens, movie viewings for adults, and tech workshops for seniors. They offer a quiet space to read or study, free internet access and computer usage, public bathrooms, printing and photocopying services, research expertise, homework help, resume help, conferences, performances–the list goes on. The short of it is: librarians are your friends, and no matter what your question or need is, they can either answer it, or point you in the right direction.
You can visit https://semainedesbibliotheques.ca/ to learn more about this year’s installment of Quebec Public Library Week. Because we are in Quebec, the website is, naturally, only available in French. I’ll bite my tongue about the implications of this and the idea of libraries as accessible spaces. But you can navigate the “Programmation” tab and select your region to discover any events happening near you, or visit your local library’s website or social media pages to see what they've got planned. Here’s just a few events in the Montreal area this week to keep an eye out for:
Montreal
What: Writing Workshop for Adults
When: Wednesday, October 22, 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM
Where: Bibliothèque de Cartierville
Learn More: https://semainedesbibliotheques.ca/programmation/atelier-decriture-2/
What: “Stanley Kubrick: Yesterday to Today” Conference for Adults
When: Thursday, October 23, 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Where: Bibliothèque Le Prévost
Learn More: https://semainedesbibliotheques.ca/programmation/stanley-kubrick-dhier-a-aujourdhui/
What: Introduction to Dungeons and Dragons for Adults
When: Friday, October 24, 2:30 PM to 5:30 PM
Where: Bibliothèque de La Petite-Patrie
Learn More: https://semainedesbibliotheques.ca/programmation/initiation-a-donjons-et-dragons/
What: Pumpkin Decorating Workshop for Families
When: Saturday, October 25, 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Where: Bibliothèque Le Prévost
Learn More: https://semainedesbibliotheques.ca/programmation/atelier-de-decoration-de-citrouilles/
What: “A Postcard, a Testimony” Workshop for All
When: Saturday, October 25, 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Where: Grande Bibliothèque (BAnQ)
Learn More: https://semainedesbibliotheques.ca/programmation/une-carte-postale-un-temoignage-2/
Surrounding
What: “A World Tour in the Footsteps of Travel Writers” Conference for Adults
When: Wednesday, October 22, 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM
Where: Bibliothèque Germaine-Guèvremont
Learn More: https://semainedesbibliotheques.ca/programmation/un-tour-du-monde-sur-les-pas-des-ecrivains-voyageurs/
What: 60th Anniversary of the Pointe-Claire Public Library
When: Wednesday, October 22, 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM
Where: Bibliothèque de Pointe-Claire
Learn More: https://semainedesbibliotheques.ca/programmation/la-bibliotheque-publique-de-pointe-claire-fete-ses-60-ans/
What: “Creative Inspiration: Autumn Nature” Workshop for Adults
When: Thursday, October 23, 10:15 AM to 11:45 AM
Where: Bibliothèque Jacques-Ferron
Learn More: https://semainedesbibliotheques.ca/programmation/inspiration-creation-nature-dautomne-2/
What: “The “Plum Ladies” of the Laval Libraries” Conference for Adults
When: Thursday, October 23, 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Where: Bibliothèque Gabrielle-Roy
Learn More: https://semainedesbibliotheques.ca/programmation/les-dames-plumes-des-bibliotheques-de-laval/
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