I Travel By Rocket Ship (and other joys of the library)

Yesterday at the library I found a book called (How To) Have A Nice Day whilst tidying the Business section. This made me smile, so I put it onto one of our shelf-end display stands with the hope that other people will walk by and it’ll make them smile too.

The little things can bring us so much joy, and I believe I am doing my job better when I’m sharing my joys with our library users, because what is a library but a space to provide joy?

The library is a warm space in the depths of winter; a space to be, uninterrupted; a portal to so many different worlds and ideas; a place where you will always be welcome to a free social interaction; a room where you can be completely yourself.

One of my favourite parts of being a library assistant is leading Storytimes in the Children’s section. I will choose books that I enjoy and I think are good, even if this means the book selection process is longer, because I can tell the session is better received and more fun for everyone when I’m enjoying myself too.

Along those lines, I like to start my Storytimes by asking how everyone got to the library that day, essentially, so I can be a nerd and talk about buses. We can also then sing The Wheels on the Bus which seems to be a favourite!

Another unique aspect of my Storytimes is I will write original stories and poems. A couple of weeks ago, for example, I told the kids that I travel by rocket ship. They may not have believed me, but buses are cool! Particularly when my favourite bus model, the Alexander Dennis Enviro400 EVs, looks like a rocket ship from behind!

I like to think I’m brightening the lives of these kids by being myself and sharing my love of buses. Regardless, I’m lucky because I get to ride one to work every day. I do, indeed, travel by rocket ship.

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I travel by rocket ship

It takes me way up high
It takes me right down low
It takes me anywhere in the city I want to go

Some journeys are short
Some journeys are long
But every journey is a lot of fun

If I press the bell, music plays
You hear that sound on the best of days

The seats are comfy
It’s a smooth ride
I often read my book until we arrive

And when it’s time for me to get off,
I wait for my rocket ship to come to a stop

I’ll wave thanks to the driver and step out into the blue
And watch my rocket ship blast off to somewhere new