LIBRARY DESIDERATA

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
Whenever possible, without surrender,
ask patrons to keep the noise down.

Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even to the dull and ignorant;
sometimes they're good for a laugh later.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexations to the spirit,
and may be in a position to have your budget cut.

If you compare yourself with patrons,
you may become vain or bitter,
for always there will be greater
and lesser persons than yourself;
even though some real doozies will come through the door.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own library, however humble,
jobs are scarce, and its paying the rent.

Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not bind to the same booksellers;
many persons strive for high turnover,
and everywhere life is full of bargains.

Be yourself.
Especially do not feign knowledge.
Neither be cynical about research;
for in the face of all innovation and progress,
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of your support group,
but don't let anyone else pull your strings.

Nurture strength of spirit
to shield you in tricky cataloguing.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many phobias start with library glue and spine labels.

Beyond a wholesome diet,
treat yourself to chocolate occasionally.

You are a graduate of library school,
though less appreciated than you deserve;
you are paid to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt AACR2 is comprehensible to some.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labours and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of the library,
have peace in your meal breaks.

With all its sham, drudgery and broken books,
it is still a beautiful library.
Be cheerful.
One day you might inherit a lot of money.