Unforgettable and thought provoking memories

By Stanley Collymore

Being a librarian in Britain was once and universally across

the country a highly knowledgeable and a very responsible

vocation, not so any more alas as those days are long

gone and even rashly and hastily forgotten, that’s

assuming of course they were ever known about

in the first place by those who hedonistically

frequent our libraries nowadays as some

where that to their heart’s content they

can either indulge luxuriantly in a multiplicity of

imbecilic and naturally non-inspirational content

that fits in handsomely, but despairingly and

markedly so to other library users that in

distinct contrast to them have sensibly

functioning and regularly utilized

brains in their heads, with these

aforesaid morons’ appallingly

to every one else apart from

them utterly fixated Reality TV fantasy

shenanigans; while additionally and

most evidently in their workshy

capacity using these libraries

as warm and obviously to

others as annoyingly

opportune places

to boisterously

hang out in!

You however are gratefully a librarian of the

old school - not only cognizant of but also

discernibly and determinedly one who

promotes the golden value rules of

yesteryear, and in that capacity

professionally, sensibly and

objectively adhere to the

cultured standards that

erudite library clients

of today fully anticipate,

appreciate, willingly

embrace and, of

course, cherish

and correctly

consider as

very dear.

© Stanley V. Collymore

27 January 2017.

Author’s Remarks:

I’ve written openly and unabashedly previously, and will wherever and whenever possible continue to do so at ever opportunity, about the parlous state of British libraries in the 21^st Century as the long forgotten genial venues for the welcoming acknowledgement, vigorous encouragement, constructive reinforcement and the objective and universal dispensing to all and sundry who are themselves seeking to improve their lives both socially and intellectually, and which indisputably constitutes the primary platform and the fundamental role of libraries, in my opinion, and why their altruistic, far-sighted originators and benefactors established them in the first place.

But unfortunately and most regrettably in practicably every conceivable sense within Britain these laudable pursuits and programmes are now as far removed from these originally and for some considerable time afterwards sterling and commensurately worthwhile goals as one can possibly get. A tedious and exasperating situation to say the least and one that can and must be steadfastly and truthfully laid not only at the feet of many of today’s library users but also significantly and most ironically in Britain’s case those of the vast majority of basically puerile jobsworth, incompetent, attention-starved and therefore populist librarians themselves; generating a truly wholesale tragedy that benefits no one, not even with the merest modicum of intelligence, but all the same reinforces the dictum of plummeting British society to the very bottom of the least common denominator for all.