Day 17, January 17

Today many people are celebrating Martin Luther King's birthday. Because I frequently march to the beat of a different drummer, I am celebrating the birthday of a different American.

Benjamin Franklin was born January 17, 1706. Called the "First American," Franklin was an author, statesman, scientist, and designer. For book-lovers like myself and others, though, he may best be remembered for establishing the first lending library in America.

As a child, I haunted the public library. In it, I found a treasure trove of wonders. Through books I was anything I wanted to be. They took me from my introverted self into unknown and unexplored worlds. I came home with bags full of books and returned the following week for more.

My mother checked out reproductions of famous paintings, exposing our family to the works of the great masters. As a young mother I took my children to the library for story hour. They sat enraptured as dedicated librarians read to them.

Libraries of today are an Aladdin's Cave of activities, lectures, and books--always books. Do you want help in preparing your taxes? Do you want to attend a lecture on a trip down the Amazon? Do you want to check out the latest in music and movies? Do you want to read Grisham's current bestseller? Head to your library.

Do you want to give your children the gift of loving to read? Do you want to treat them to trips to the Orient, to the South Pole, to ancient Greece? Do you want to enrich their lives in untold ways? Then head to the library.

So, for today, I am grateful for Benjamin Franklin and his vision.