Little Lending Library....
Published by Ronald Steed,
Mystic Micro-Gospels; small spiritual stories in and around my neighborhood in Southeast CT
I see it on the corner along my walking path... a Little Lending Library. It calls to me. "I'll just take a picture" I say to myself, "Nothing more." If I open Pandora's Box, I will be there for an hour flipping pages, passing my exercise time in those books. I imagine Mary's bun-haired alternative universe in "Its a Wonderful Life" (Where's Mary?! Where IS she!? George desperately pleads, breaking Clarence's will to resist ...."She's just about to close up the li-brar-eeee!"). She's there, chuckling behind the window pane, watching my struggle. "Evil with a card catalog..." I think to myself.
Our daughter Heather has these Little Lending Libraries scattered all over her neighborhood in Eastern Market, Washington D.C. They are a delight. Each one reflects the personality of its owner. Some are serious and ruthlessly spare in their construction (Nietzsche, Prust, Howard Roark); others are full of whimsey and serendipity (Elizabeth Bennet & Mr. Darcy, Velveteen Rabbit). For a few, the owner will pop out and engage you in long conversation about the contents. Get a new book... get a new friend too!
And isn't that the point? A way for neighbors to connect their passions? A book gets added in the morning; it's borrowed in the afternoon. Two hearts entwined by a tiny structure on the side of the street.
"AhhhThere must be some easier way for me to get my walks…"
