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For all my friends
kicking off Summer Learning tomorrow, a few sage words (such as they may be):
You might not feel ready, but you are. You're ready to dazzle
kids and families by making them feel welcome, wanted, and valued at the
library. They're coming to see you, not to see if all your programs are planned,
if your bulletin boards are done, or if all your decorations are up. (Mine
aren't.)
Put aside those holy-cow-I-still-have-so-much-to-do lists that
feel impossible because they are. That stuff pales
in comparison to those little faces glowing with excitement and wonder about
summer at your library. I don't know about you, but I'd much rather look at
them than at mountains of paperwork, forms, or ungodly spreadsheets of numbers
and statistics.
You hardly need the
reminder, but nothing and no one is more important than the child standing in
front of you or little one sitting next to you. If your library kids know that,
you're doing a kick-ass job with SLC. Everything else you "have to"
do is secondary or even tertiary. (Trust me. It'll all get done. It can all
wait. Kids can't and shouldn't have to do the same.)
All you "have
to" do is make the library a fun and magical place this summer, and you do
that by simply being present and available for your kids. Greet them. Smile at
them. Love them. And for heaven's sake, GET AWAY FROM YOUR DESK and have an
amazing time with them.
At the end of the
summer or years down the line, kids won't remember the stuff they got by being
part of your SLC. They'll remember the time you spent with them and how
important you made them feel. Those are the real prizes, both for you and for
them.
Need a reality check
at any point in the next 8-12 weeks? You know where to find me (alsc.jenna@hotmail.com or Twitter @ALAJenna .
Love to you all
Thank you so much--just what I needed today...
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