ALA Conference...the summit for Librarians

Over the past three days I attended my first American Library Association (ALA) Conference. What a massive production this annual conference is! ALA's website says that the average conference attendance is 25,000 participants. Phew! Pretty incredible! Basically, if you are anywhere in the vicinity of the Washington Convention Center, you will see parades of tote-bearing librarians, many adorned with buttons like "I love to read" or "Freedom to read", and other eclectic book related paraphernalia. We are a unique bunch, it is true, and there is something particularly unique about being at a conference with tens of thousands of other professional colleagues. Two of my librarian friends and I were commenting about the interesting dynamics that arise when you have this many people of the same profession all together in one place. You begin to recognize a certain commonality of mannerisms, ways of thinking, personal passions, and similar goals. We were talking about how amongst librarians, who are often more of the introverted, reflective, melancholic types, walk around the convention center more quietly, with a sense of interiority as they try to find the correct meeting room, and once in the session display a common sense of curiosity and love for learning. As my one of my librarian friends said, "When I would go to speech pathology conferences I never really felt like I fit in. But when I go to librarian conferences I just think, "I belong here!" It's true, in many senses I also felt as though I fit in. It's encouraging and invigorating to be amidst a worldwide crowd of colleagues, coming together with fundamental common visions and passions, sharing ideas and gaining inspiration to take back to your own specific library.

I attended the conference on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. I was not thrilled to have to attend a work function on a Sunday, but was able to get to Mass on Saturday evening. I felt as though on Sunday, the Lord's Day, I was more conscious of the spiritual aspect of my professional life and place in the library realm. As you may or may not know, librarianship, although pinned as a very conservative, bun-donning, long skirt and blouse wearing bunch, has become quite a "liberal" profession, and the American Library Association in particular aggressively pushes agendas which I cannot condone. Over the past three years as I have been trained in this profession and then entered the workforce, I have learned that working as a librarian while maintaining my moral convictions is a continually evolving call and challenge. So many of the issues within librarianship, from issues of intellectual freedom to parental control to censorship and beyond are issues that must be wrestled with each time they are presented within their own specific context. While their are fundamental perspectives that a Catholic librarian can hold, it's not as simple as creating a black and white formula for dealing with these issues. Essentially they must be dealt with on a case-by-case basis, in a thoughtful, nuanced way. The very fact that these issues cannot necessarily answered with a blanket philosophy can be daunting. And yet it is the challenge of so many Catholic young professionals today. We have not been called to shrink away from the secular world, but to be the leaven within society. And if we have been called, we will be given the grace.

Ultimately, I felt very invigorated by the opportunity to be a part of this large professional gathering as a librarian dedicated to the pursuit of Beauty, Goodness, and Truth. Our profession has such an incredible potential to provide others with the opportunity and inspiration to seek Truth through knowledge. What an honor it is to be an instrument in that pursuit of Truth in whatever small ways it may be. We are all called to "renew all things in Christ" (Eph.1:10) and I am excited to strive to make this incorporate this call into my life.

Small enough

On my way to work this morning as I was reading my morning prayer, I was thinking about how I was not looking forward to beginning the boring drudgery of my job. Same old, same old. Rather monotonous, not exciting. I am sure that I have alluded to this before, but as someone with a strong melancholic disposition, I am spurred on by feeling as if I am working towards some great ideal, changing the world and making a difference. Doing something honorable and noble. When I don't feel a sense of passionate purpose for my work it's very difficult for me to maintain an enthusiastic attitude towards my duty. I am a visionary who likes to connect my task and experience of the moment with a sweeping vision of grandeur - the grandeur of seeking the Good, the True, and the Beautiful. The problem is, as deeply as I seek to connect the mundane with the holy in my daily life, I am often frustrated when I am unable to see how the tiny acts of faithfulness add up to a bigger, noble project of obedience.

I think that all of us who seek to do the work of the Lord would choose, if possible, to do the more glamorous work, such as being a missionary in a foreign country, or writing books that will change hearts. It struck me this morning, that so much of doing God's will in our lives is dependent on us letting ourselves be small enough. Small enough to accept that God knows in advance the good works He has prepared for us to do. Even if these are the most seemingly secular, straightforward, material tasks. This is His will for us, His way to lead us closer to Himself, His mysterious way of our sanctification. It's that little letting go, that obedience to do small things, that has the potential to bring forth great grace. The grace of the moment, though, is just oh so hidden. Especially when I think about how I just want to take a nap at 2pm, or how meaningless the task at hand seems. Grace...huh? Holiness? I'm just bored! The grace of the moment is waiting for us, in our selfless assent to complete the duty of the moment with love.

This morning in an effort to rouse myself to be more productive and faithful in my workday, I read some quotes on the website escrivaworks.org. I found out later that tomorrow is Saint Josemaria Escriva's feast day, so reflecting on his words was all the more fitting. This quote was particularly inspirational to me:

"When you started your ordinary work again, something like a groan of complaint escaped you: “It’s always the same!”

And I told you: “Yes, it’s always the same. But that ordinary job —which is the same one your fellow workers do — has to be a constant prayer for you. It has the same lovable words, but a different tune each day.”

It is very much our mission to transform the prose of this life into poetry, into heroic verse." - The Furrow, 500

In fulfilling our mundane daily duties, whether they be in the office, in the home, or in the school, we are charged with the challenge to transform all of these tasks into an act of love. It is by doing these tasks with love that we offer our efforts to Christ and our work is made holy. To be completely honest though, I must say that I don't really know what it means, on a practical level, to offer your tasks to the Lord as an act of love. There is still a bit of a disconnect for me. I suppose that it begins with a prayer, or a series of prayers throughout the duration of the tasks of the day in conscienously offering your work as a prayer. It means looking for the Lord in the midst of these tasks. I envision that above all, it is a disposition of the heart that one develops by assenting to the duties of the moment, especially the small ones. By giving our own fiat, moment by moment, we accept what the Lord has for us. And in this moment, we find His love burning there. I wish I could get there in one fell swoop. I wish this was a disposition that I could just acquire automatically. But I know that it's a process and a grace, learned along the journey.

St. Josemaria Escriva, pray for us!

Scenic detour

I wanted to share a photo here that I took while driving back to DC from Pittsburgh last weekend. I got off the exit for Frostburg, Maryland in hopes of finding a McDonalds to get an iced coffee. Although the highway sign advertised a McDonalds, I was not able to find it along the sprawling mountain road. I was, however, awestruck by the gorgeous view from the road. Never having gotten off at this exit before, I had no idea that if you traveled up the road to Frostburg you would be rewarded with a breathtaking view of the rolling mountains covered with a faint blanket of fog, and beneath you a mountain town nestled into the mountainside. The sun was beginning to set at this point, and so the rays of the sun beaming down through the fog onto the mountainside was magnificant. I decided that although I couldn't find a McDonalds, I certainly had to take a photo of this beautiful scene. So I pulled into the Walgreens parking lot overlooking the view, and pulled out my camera. I was grateful as I drove out of Frostburg onto the highway. No latte. But even better, I got to witness a glorious mountainside panorama I never would have experienced if I hadn't gotten off that exit. It was worth the detour for the unique glimpse of His magnificent, beautiful creation.