This column is a regular contribution from Wilton Newcomers Club president Tara Thompson.
“I have no friends!” I cried, bursting into tears as I slammed into the house after my first day of third grade.
The year before I’d had lots of friends, a whole little group of girls I happily played with during recess and after school. But on this day, I discovered that none of them were in my class. None. As in, not one.
Could I make new friends? Sure. And eventually I did, but that didn’t erase the hurt when I was excluded by my second grade friends for being in a different class.
Third grade was definitely a transformative year for me, and I remember it better than any other year from my K-6 school. Recess became fraught with anxiety. The girls in my class mostly played soccer. I hated soccer, and I was terrible at it–I mean, really terrible. Let’s just say that if I scored a goal, it was invariably for the other team. I wanted to be with my old friends in that little cove of trees playing house or school, using branches to sweep the ground free of acorns and pine needles, and scavenging for things that would become something else: a piece of twine would be fashioned into a ring, or a stick would become a pen, used to play tic-tac-toe in the sand. Soccer, not so much.
Feeling as if I wasn’t quite accepted by either group, I often retreated to the library and the librarian became my closest friend that year. She would set books aside for me, and I would eagerly race to her, anxious to discover what new world awaited me. The Ramona and Beezus series by Beverly Cleary, the Fudge books by Judy Blume, and Shel Silverstein’s delightfully whimsical poems were among my favorites.
To this day, I have a soft spot for libraries. I take my children often, and the only rule is that they have to check out books. Not the movies they love to browse through, they get plenty of screen time already. In my opinion, one of the greatest gifts I will ever give them is an appreciation for the written word. To open up a book and discover a world written solely in black and white on a flat piece of paper, and have it come alive in their mind… it is truly priceless.
Whether you’re a kid or an adult, real life is often not an easy place. But anyone can walk into a library and escape their own stresses for a while, or look for ways to solve them.
You don’t have to buy an overpriced coffee to walk into the Wilton Library, and everyone should take full advantage of our wonderful local resource. Beyond the dizzying array of books and movies, there are frequent author talks, an innovation station, and dozens of classes and story-times for every age. Last summer feels like forever ago, but if I remember right, there were even a few camps.
As president of the Wilton Newcomers Club, I was able to choose how the money we raised this year would be charitably allocated. In my mind, there was absolutely no question that it should be given to our Library. Our upcoming fundraiser is going to be a blast! On March 28 we will be hosting a Murder Mystery Night Cocktail Party at the Library’s Secret Speakeasy at eight o’clock. Mingle with mobsters and molls, all while trying to solve a crime. Whether you’re a Newcomer or not, this party is for you. Delicious food and drinks will be served by Café Ruche, there will be jazz by local musicians… and of course, who doesn’t love a little murder from time to time?
See you at the Speakeasy!
