The Knight library is a magical place. A day spent at the library is well spent indeed… for me, at least. It has the manifold benefits of:
- Being a fun outing
- Having magnificent resources
- Removing me from my native environment, thereby making it harder to get distracted and easier to concentrate.
I didn’t truly discover the wonder of the library until we had to start doing research papers last fall. Before that I had mainly stayed on the ground floor, using the computers for internet research and ocasionally venturing upstairs to use the quiet reading room. But for some reason, I had never had occasion to look for any books there until last fall. Imagine how shocked I was to turn around on that stair landing and discover… a world of books!
There really is something about wandering through those stacks of books, clutching a scribbled call number in one hand and scanning the spines of countless tomes. The first time I did it, I felt like I could probably take on the world singlehandedly; I mean, here was information about any subject I could imagine. I don’t know how to properly communicate how exciting that was.
Tonight was probably the longest session I’ve spent at the library yet. But it really helped me nail down the focus of the antsy paper I have due on Tuesday. It’s strange, though, how the ideas in the works I’m reading seem so much more imminent and important while I’m at the library. While I’m there, I feel free to let my mind explore the arguments at leisure, spending lengthy amounts of time accomplishing nothing but thinking. But as soon as I get in my car to come home, the mundane life slips back into focus and those lofty ideas are pushed into the background for the time being. Interesting.
So, thank you, Knight library! Thank you for your comfortable chairs, your plentiful nooks in which to study, your good computers and of course, your books.