Our Happy Place

The Ledding library has always been such a big part of my life. I remember being a kid there, curled up in a corner of the basement kids section reading Garfield comics and boxcar children, loving that cranky old blue elevator. I remember seeing a concert outside in the 1990s where the whole family played the violin, like all 7 of them.

I kept going all through my 20s, albeit sporadically and more riddled with late fees. I loved finding new albums to listen to by artists I’d never heard of.

Now that I have kids, the library is a weekly ritual we all love. As a new mom, I loved choosing some picture books while my toddler played with duplos and board books. Now my oldest winds up curled in the corner with her own chapter books and graphic novels, just like I used to, while I do a puzzle or a puppet show with my youngest.

When we moved and had to cut out internet for our smaller budget, it was manageable because we had the library- we could look things up, print things out, and check out movies and tv shows to watch.

We love the scavenger hunts, the community events like dragon dances and concerts and readings and movies. We love the library of things and being able to try things for a couple weeks that we probably wouldn’t buy- like a button press or a bread maker. We especially love the board games.

And I still love going there by myself sometimes, too- reveling in the peace and positive, kind energy of a quiet place to journal or read that’s not out to make any money.

The Ledding Library has been one of my best happy places since I can remember, like an old friend, and I’m unspeakably grateful for it.