It wasn’t your imagination. It was a bad storm. Wind gusts on the outer Cape in excess of 80mph, with frequent 60mph gusts in and around Osterville. With the leaves still on the trees, and 2 – 4 inches of rain it’s no wonder over half a million people in Massachusetts lost power, most of them on the Cape.
The Osterville Village Library was one of only a handful of libraries to open in the aftermath of the storm thanks to a generator, which supplies power to the entire building. Patrons were able to come in to enjoy the warmth, a cup of coffee, and charge their mobile devices before heading home. Having power however doesn’t necessarily ensure WiFi, or internet connectivity, neither of which the library was able to provide due to downed lines in the area. Whereas many people come to the library to use the computers, they were faced with a seldom-encountered situation in modern times… What to do?
You could of course read a book. They still exist. Hard bound volumes of printed pages that tell fascinating stories. Instead of watching someone else’s vision of a character on screen, your mind fills in the descriptive blanks to your own satisfaction. The faces and landscapes in the tale come alive in your mind, uniquely yours, and yours alone.
There are 38,000 books on 3 floors inside the Osterville Village Library. Due to the internet outage, the age-old tradition of perusing library shelves for appealing titles enjoyed a renaissance. Patrons who normally use the library to access the internet, or email, found themselves wandering around the building discovering surprises around every corner. Featured authors on display caught their eye, as well as an extensive selection of biographies which piqued curiosity,
One library staff member remarks, “It was interesting to see, some of our regular computer users were browsing the racks, reading the first few pages of novels. It was as if they had discovered a forgotten world.” While the library’s regular circulation numbers in regard to books are quite impressive year round, it was the renaissance of good old fashioned shelf browsing that was witnessed as a welcome phenomenon. “Usually people request a book, or pick up a best seller, their choices by and large driven by research they’ve initialized on the internet,” the OVL staff member explains. “What we saw in the aftermath of the storm, was people browsing the racks, cracking open a book based on an appealing title, and making a spot decision to check it out, the way libraries used to be.”
What’s more, with computer technology inoperative, the staff checked out the books the old-fashioned way, with a careful record kept by pad and pencil. “Nothing against technology, not at all,” another staff member says, “but it was nice to see our collection of books stand on their own appeal, and if I’m not mistaken, people actually seemed to enjoy the experience, it brought them back to a simpler time.”
The way Osterville Village Library Executive Director Cyndy Cotton sees it, offering shelter from the storm is part of the library’s role in the community. “I don’t have power, and neither do a lot of people in the village. Your cell phone battery only lasts so long. People need to stay charged up to let relatives and friends know they’re ok, or to call a contractor to fix damage.”
“It gets dreary sitting around the house with no power and even though it’s not winter, it was starting to get cold,” says one library patron who expressed his appreciation for a place to go. “The library is warm, has bright lights, and as neighbors we all enjoy swapping stories about the storm. I’m really glad they’re open.”
As utility crews work to restore power and internet, and tree crews labor to clean up the mess, the inconvenience from our October nor’easter will surely pass. It’s also likely most will fall back in step with their modern habits and computer screens will once again cast their glow. But perhaps, the lost art of old fashioned discovery will have found its way back into a few hearts and minds.
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