One lesson you are quick to learn as a librarian is how fast children grow up. Three years have passed since I began working at my library. Infants became preschoolers, preschoolers became young children, and tweens became teenagers.
COVID made this transition even more alarming. After a year and a half of being closed to the public, many of our children grew in a blink of an eye. I feel like I just saw many of them, but in reality it was a large chunk of time.
The one group this time lapse greatly affected were the tweens. Many of our tween regulars no longer visit us. They grew up quickly during COVID. Many of them were about 9 to 11-years-old. Now, they are anywhere between 11 to 13-years-old. They no longer fit in our children’s department where you can play with building blocks and puppets, and the games on our computers include ABC Mouse and National Geographic Kids. They are looking for peer interactions, Nintendo Switches and PS5s.
This revelation came to me when one of my regular’s Adrian came in to visit right after we re-opened. When I last saw him, he was about 11-years-old, and we knew his transition to the teen department would come any day. Pre-COVID, he was satisfied with Minecraft and hanging out with the younger kids in the area.
When we re-opened, I was happy to see him strolling into the library. We had no contact with our patrons during the shutdown, and we did not know how well everyone fared. Adrian looked great! However, he was about 5 inches taller and broader in the chest. His face thinned out, and when he spoke, his voice was octaves lower.
However, the sweet, kind, and polite Adrian was still there. He was happy to see us in return and asked us all how we did during the shutdown. We asked about his Mother, and she was doing well too.
As we finished our conversation, I asked him if he was going to play for a while, and Adrian turned a little flushed. Embarrassed, he responded, “Well, I was going to go upstairs to meet up with some of my friends.”
I knew it was coming, but it did not make it any less tough to hear.
Laughing, I told him, “Of course! Have so much fun! We will always be down here if you need us.”
He smiled and walked upstairs.
It’s amazing to watch children grow into teens and young adults. It’s an amazing evolution, and it humbles me. Life goes by quickly, and it is important to appreciate the young children in your lives for their growing personalities and personal characteristics.
Equally, as a librarian, it’s important to realize how much you influence a young person’s experiences. Your kindness and open-heart can drastically affect how someone like Adrian views the library and the librarians inside. I truly believe Adrian knows he can come to me if he ever needs to talk.
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