The Written Word
It probably comes as no surprise to you
that I have fallen in love with the written word. It is my primary means of
self-expression, as well as my passion. I feel I have always lived a life of
words…
Now that I am a published author, I have
an immense respect for authors and self-publishers. To begin with a glimmer of
a thought in your head to finish with your words printed on a page is nothing
short of miraculous.
I should have known I was destined to
live a life of words. I first worked in a library in my elementary school;
since then
I have spent over twenty years of my life working in libraries. It
is always a fascinating subject, the future of libraries, of the
written word.
People always ask if new libraries that
are built in the future will have books in them. My answer is always a
resounding: “Absolutely.” I have heard the comparison of books versus
electronic books to be like a staircase versus an escalator. Both stairs and
escalators still exist; one did not replace the other; both transport you to
the place you want to be.
In looking throughout the history of
mankind, the first written language is dated more than 2,500 years before the
birth of Christ. It seems implausible to me that written language will fade
away.
It is always interesting to me to hear
people philosophize about the future, about our society, about technology,
social media, and wonder if we are going to a completely digital age. I hear
people from older generations talk about young people today, that they do not
write and are not taught how to write. I have heard comments about the future,
and how worried they are that there will be no written record of younger
generations. They are worried that there will be nothing to look back to, no
diaries, letters or correspondence, nothing to mark this generation in history.
How will future generations be able to glean any knowledge or information about
our society? Will there be any records of my generation, or those after me?
What of generations to come? How will people in the future come to know about
us?
Do I think that the written word is endangered,
that technology has doomed books, or the written word, to fall away in evolution
like the dinosaur? My answer to that would be: “Absolutely not.”
It is true that technology has changed
our lives, mostly for the better. We have replaced pen and paper for computer
screen and keyboard. Without technology, I would not be able to write my words
and share them with all of you, in every corner of cyberspace.
I feel that the written language is a
tool, much like technology. Any knowledge gleaned about my generation,
and those to come, will be gleaned from the written word and from technology.
My books will survive long after I am gone. So will this blog, or blogs I
create in the future, I believe.
No matter
how the information is stored, in the pages of a diary, written in a letter,
written on a blog, in an online database or in the pages of a book, real or
virtual, we need to maintain and contribute to these written records. We must
leave something of our generation and for those to come.
As important
as it is to leave something for future generations to find, it is incumbent
upon us, and of future generations, to look back in time and learn from the
past. The great Winston Churchill once said: “Those who fail to learn from
history are doomed to repeat it.”
Looking back
in time, I think back to the diary of Anne Frank. The words written in that
plaid diary enable the world to learn about Anne as a person, as well as her
experience in hiding. We are fortunate that we have Anne’s diary to learn from.
However, think of the tens of millions of people murdered in the holocaust.
Their words are lost to us forever.
The written word is alive and well and
will last long as humankind. We must choose to contribute to it and to consult
it. Future generations will consult your
contribution. Make sure you make one.
“The powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. What
will your verse be?”
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