Hipster poet and jazz lyricist Fran Landesman has become inexplicably obscure (Note to Music majors in need of a research project.)  But a line from her great song “It Isn’t So Good It Couldn’t Get Better” is going through my mind today as we get ready to celebrate National Library Week.  She wrote, “I’m never surprised at what life might arrange; the one thing I’m always prepared for is change.”  Words positively Boy Scout-ish in their wisdom!  Change is, indeed, the by-word in today’s library, because it is synonymous with how we will sustain ourselves and remain relevant in the 21^st century.

When I first began working at the Monterey Public Library almost 30 years ago, it was not some silent, stuffy old slacker with dim lamps and dust filled shelves.  The Monterey Public Library had a solid reputation for being a progressive library.  Housed in a modern architectural landmark filled with beautiful works by renowned artists, Monterey Public Library was blessed with robust funding, an excellent collection of materials, and plenty of staff to manage all those clunky, labor-intensive tasks of yesteryear.  Beyond the basics, the Library housed a valuable research collection of books on art and architecture, local historical resources, and featured lending collections of art prints, phonograph records, music cassettes, talking books, and even films in the brand-spanking new VHS format.  The Library hosted children’s events, lectures and documentary film programs, and within a few short years, added a regular series of storytelling for adults, acoustic music concerts, poetry readings, author visits, and book discussions.  As libraries go, the Monterey Public Library has always had what can only be called pizzazz.

But riding a wave of success didn’t stop Monterey Public Library from preparing for the next big thing, because game-changing computer technologies were just out on the horizon, and soon enough they presented us with a heady array of new tools for organizing and gathering information and delivering service faster and more efficiently.  And as soon as we got our technology plan on paper and figured out how to pay for it, we dove in - head first!

In this current decade the Library has been keeping its eye on a couple of new and very big changes  - the economic reality that there are diminishing resources for Library operations and the skyrocketing demand for library services. This is change that doesn’t call for sitting by to see what happens next.  So, once again, we are preparing for change.  Each time you visit the library, you’ll see evidence of this (other bloggers can fill you in on the details.)  Will these changes help us meet the challenges we face today and in the near future?   We certainly hope so.  We also hope that you will give us your feedback so that we can tweak and fine-tune as needed to make sure that our new service model will help the Library continue on its longstanding course of progress in an ever-changing world.    

So, this National Library Week we extend two invitations to you – an invitation to prepare for changes in the Library and an invitation to be involved in the process so that the Library remains a strong and sustainable resource for you and the entire community.  Now, back to that great song…