Bookshelf: Library events fill social calendar, fuel connection

Published 1:00 am Tuesday, February 6, 2024

I recently filled my future free time with events from the library. I feel excited, yet slightly anxious, about what lies ahead.

The topic of our nationwide health epidemic of loneliness and social isolation has been on my mind since the start of the year. I think about it constantly in my work. What can I do as a librarian, a community resource, and a connector, to address the problem?

I also feel this issue strongly in my personal life. Where can a full-time working mother of a 19-month-old with three dogs and wife go for some friendship around here?

When the 2023 Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Healing Effects of Social Connection and Community listed ways that individuals can address this issue, I took notice. A few recommendations seemed immediately doable: “Invest time in nurturing your relationships.” “Minimize distraction during conversation.” “Be responsive, supportive, and practice gratitude.”

As a social and work experiment, I thought it would be brilliant to see how Deschutes Public Library can help with feelings of loneliness. What if I participated in library events not as an employee but as a community member? Can regularly participating in library events to form connections make one feel less lonely?

This is what I am hoping to find out and share with our library customers. In the time being, here are the four events I will be participating in this February and March:

Saturday, Feb. 10: Music in public places at the High Desert Music HallIt will be the start of my weekend. I’ll spend time with the family in the morning then catch some live music. They plan to play classical pieces from West Side Story! Seems like a good opportunity to be responsive, and supportive, and practice gratitude.

Friday, March 1: Author, Author Stephanie Land talk at the Bend High AuditoriumI am actually practicing gratitude right now thanks to this offering. As an employee, we are gifted a free ticket to an “Author, Author” event and I chose this one. I recently watched “Maid” during the January snowstorm and instantly connected with the protagonist, Alex, a young mother and maid trying to make a better life for her and her daughter. (“Maid” is a Netflix series based on Land’s memoir of the same name.)

Saturday, March 16: Music together workshop at the Becky Johnson CenterI am thrilled that our library can offer these fun classes for littles on a Saturday. My daughter loves dancing to a beat so I am excited to dance and play with other littles and experiment with musical instruments, which we don’t have at home. I’d say this event falls squarely into the “investing time nurturing your relationships” recommendation. (Full disclosure, I’m attending the Feb. 10 event of this in Sunriver, I just wanted to share the Redmond date since this column is publishing in the Spokesman).

Wednesday, March 27: Ceviche at AromeI’ve always wanted to do a cooking class but never got around to it. I love the idea of learning to make ceviche because it reminds me of being on vacation. I envision this will be something like that — a trip to Cabo San Lucas, but with new people. Time to practice “minimizing distraction during conversation!”

That’s the plan for now and as I had mentioned earlier I do still feel anxious about my upcoming library social calendar. Why? This is different for me. Usually, I do my work and spend my free time … not at work.

But as I go through our full lineup of events and offerings I truly can’t see a better place to connect, form new relationships, and strengthen the current ones I have. I also get to support my colleagues who worked very hard to bring these programs to our community. Because being supportive is another loneliness anti-dote.

Hopefully, this inspires you to pick up a Deschutes Public Library events guide or check out our online calendar so you add some events to your social lineup and maybe I’ll see you around town! You at least will know where I’ll be.