The recent Library Friends of Cook County community book sale is another success for all concerned. Kudos to Ina Sinkeldam and her capable volunteers for a job extremely well done.
As I viewed the tables loaded with hard and soft cover books, magazines, videos, DVDs, audio cassettes and children’s texts, I was filled with gratitude that these items would be used again and not destroyed or discarded. Obviously, the good people of Cook County do a lot of reading.
I find the annual book sale a wonderful opportunity to find enriching materials of all kinds with great prices and to visit with others with similar interests. All income goes to support the library mission so everyone in Cook County benefits.
Yet there is another benefit behind the book sale. It’s the freedom we enjoy under our Constitution’s First Amendment to openly share information, to distribute materials, including religious texts, to voice our concerns, to assemble and to learn of other viewpoints from many sources.
While it’s exciting to find something valuable such as a worn but classic text, to me it’s the entire perspective of the sale that reminds me of our cherished freedoms that we sometimes take for granted.
In an increasingly complex world of mass information traveling the globe at speeds beyond belief, the printed word still speaks to our hearts and minds. Our ability to read whatever we wish, to discuss our interests freely and openly, and to ponder the wonders of our world encourages us to consider how we in turn can respond to each other and the issues confronting us. More so than electronic visuals alone, the printed word encourages us to use our minds, to take time to digest information, to keep books around for future enjoyment and to share with family and friends.
This ability to exercise the freedom to obtain and share information and to be informed is indeed one of the best gifts we receive from this annual book sale. And for all Americans, such a freedom is worth protecting and preserving for all time.
Dick Struck
Grand Marais
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