My bookish past

I have just finished playing in books and blue and white china and it makes me think how grateful I am to two specific people from outside my family as well as my dad.  

I am forever in the debt of Mrs. Reding.  When I was small, Mrs. Reding was the teacher in charge of the library in our little old Gr. 1-3 school building and eventually, was one of the Grade 5 teachers.  Our other grade 5 teacher was Mrs. Dziendzielowskli but she was another story so I will save that for another day.  

I remember being allowed to take as many books as I wanted to from the library so I could read to my hearts content.  Even in grade 1, on the days we could take our readers home, I would read the whole book, even though I would get scolded for reading ahead.  At some point when I was very small, my dad bought a set of the Book of Knowledge, a very readable sort of childrens enclyclopedia and read it I did.  Dad bought a huge number of Reader's Digest Condesned books too, so there was always something to read at home, but I lived for the school library.  

When I was in Grade 3 I helped Mrs. Reding do books at lunch hour.  This led to my getting permission to go to the high school library (really, the library for grades 4 to 12) to pick out books.  

I still remember my first trip there.  The room was filled with long sturdy wood tables and there was one massive wall of books along one whole side of the room.    And I stood way below the top of the surface of the librarians desk.  I loved that school library.  Mrs. Reding eventually took a degree in library science so our little school was very lucky.  We had the skill of a professional librarian building a collection of books and films and so much other materials, that still stands as the best small school library anywhere in western Canada. (IMO)  My own kids went to school in there and in, Hanna, Calgary and Sherwood Park and no place had anything like Mrs. Redings library.

And then there was Jim.  Jim was a teacher who came to our school as a student teacher and stayed for the rest of his teaching career.  He was clever and was a great teacher and connected with kids.  He inspired me to read history for fun which explains many of the titles in my personal library.  He also provided me with the understanding that what was printed on the page was not all that was, and that the stories of the why and the where and the views of the other side of history were as important though often missing in the written records. He helped me to see how much the sometimes cold lists of dates and places and names skipped and to look for the stories of the people involved for a sense of what really happened.  And that it was our job to learn and find that too.  Having Jim as a teacher taught me to  see what was without judgement.  Or at the very least to try.

Going through my books, dusting and sorting and fitting it all back on the shelves was so filled with memories.  And joy.   And sorrow that so many young people don't ever have those kind of people in their lives.  

I was very lucky, lucky in so many ways and I never ever forget that.