On my first day of work as elementary school librarian, I watched as small groups of young students trooped in and plonked themselves down on the carpet to absorb the library vibe and meet the new librarian. I introduced myself and explained about story time and the exciting prospect of being able to borrow books. “And if a class is really good about listening to the read-aloud, and if they are very quiet, you will get to meet some of my puppet friends who live in the library.” Their big eyes scanned the top shelf where the various puppet animals were perched, waiting to speak to them.
“Do they talk all by themselves?” asked one little girl. “No,” I replied. “They are a bit shy. They only talk when they’re right next to me.” Well, that made perfect sense to them. Still, they studied the puppets for any signs of movement while they sat very still.
As one class stood up to file out, a little boy raised his hand very high in the air. “Yes?”
“Quiet,” he declared, “is coming!” Quite a statement from a Kindergardener who are not typically known for bringing quiet to anything. He had determined that he would be so quiet, however, that the puppets would be brave enough to speak. We’ll see if he succeeds.
Little did I know how prophetic that statement would be. I had learned to associate school with noisy, engaging, relentless activity. As a teacher in a self-contained classroom of 5th graders, I was always listening and looking in several directions at once. I had learned to distinguish productive noise from distracting chatter. I could sense conflict almost before it happened. I could hear someone being excluded from group work. Working in the library is much different. The quiet was coming, indeed. I often wonder if the students are still in the building, it’s so quiet. The background clamor of the playground does not penetrate the glass walls and stacks of books. The quiet is here. It picks me up off the ground and I sometimes feel as if I am a spirit, floating among the shelves, silently sliding volumes back into their spaces.