"A sacred mission"

The 2009 SLA Conference kept me far too busy to blog, but I’m finally catching my breath. I suppose I could have blogged every day and Twittered away to keep my peeps on the edge of their chairs, but I didn’t feel moved to stop and write things down until the crowning event at the Library of Congress.

Two nights ago, to celebrate the SLA’s 100th anniversary, the Awards Reception was held in the Great Hall. It was magical–and a very, very nice way to cap off the conference. James H. Billington, Librarian of Congress, spoke earlier in the day, and called librarianship a “sacred mission,” which touched everyone in the room. In the cathedral of the Library of Congress’ Great Hall, that mission becomes real.

I talked earlier in this blog about our “noble calling” so you know I’m a believer in the future of libraries. I interned at the Library of Congress in 1981, and I was entranced the whole night, going through my own personal way back machine. What will the next 100 years bring?

Meanwhile, the conference is over! And what a whirlwind; it was totally exhausting, but in a nice way. For SLA, it was a really good conference: lots and lots of people, plenty of attentive vendors, and no real problems. The sessions I attended were spot-on.

It was a totally different conference being a candidate for President-Elect. I was very busy trying to be in all the right places and to shake hands and share ideas with as many people as possible. I always wish I could go to more sessions.

Today, I’m so tired that I’m losing body parts—first my smile faded, then my eyes were shot, then my voice went, and finally my feet had to be wrapped in band-aids from all the walking around. But I feel cautiously optimistic that I have a done my best.  I wanted to take advantage of this gathering of the tribe to meet as many members as I could, and to share ideas with them. People were very positive and supportive about my message: Future Ready.

What’s next? For now, I’ll visit my daughter in New York City and drop in on the SLA 100th Anniversary festivities there. It’s my next ticketed event!