Inside the library

Sophie Mégevand, Fribourg, Switzerland.

October 21, 2011

Tags: The Way, Charity, Opus Dei, Work The world of libraries: a network of human relations in which God has his place
When I say I am a librarian, people often say, “Lucky you, you must read lots of books!” It’s true that a large number of books passes through my hands, but I only have time to skim through them. That is part of my job, so that I can catalogue them correctly and pick out key-words to describe their content.

The duty of the moment
Sometimes I am strongly tempted to get stuck into a book that looks really good, but I have to leave it and deal with the next one. Then is the time to offer a little act of self-denial to our Lord, restraining my curiosity, to fulfil the duty of that moment. I seem to hear St Josemaria whispering in my ear, “Do what you ought, and put your heart into what you’re doing!” (The Way, no. 815).

Ongoing training
Printed paper has not yet disappeared completely, but the importance of electronic publications is steadily growing, so in order to keep up with information and documentation I have to keep track of the development of new technologies and document indexing tools on the internet. That requires ongoing training, and means I can never rest on my oars. Another opportunity to offer to God my efforts to do my work competently.

My job is very clearly a direct service to the whole university community. There the contacts one makes are not virtual but very real, and with all sorts of people. Responding day after day to the needs of the library users, students, researchers and lecturers, gives me an opportunity to exercise plenty of virtues, such as helpfulness, friendliness, patience, precision, and many more. To do that I count on God’s help; I’ve already asked him for it during the time I spend in prayer at the start of each day, in a one-to-one conversation with him when I offer him the new page of my life that is opening up before me. Then I find it easier, afterwards, to turn to him with brief prayers of petition or thanksgiving in the course of the day, in the desire to make life pleasanter for others.

Different ways of acting and working
As I work in a network of libraries, I also have many exchanges with colleagues. It is very enriching, both from the professional and the personal viewpoint. There too I have to exercise openness, generosity in providing help, giving good advice, or volunteering to minute a meeting, and flexibility to adapt to different ways of acting and working... Often I need to be careful not to fall into the “blame game”, because in all big organisations, and especially academic ones, it’s very easy to find fault with the administration or with individual people. I see that as a magnificent opportunity for my own character development and hence sanctification, by seeking to please my Father-God more and more, and trying to engage in all these situations under his eyes. I am also responsible for a team of students who are in charge of the supervision and lending services in my library. I try to engage them, train them and keep an eye on the quality of the work that they are entrusted with.

In a lunch-break
All these contacts and relationships can deepen continually, many of them developing into real friendships. And then our conversations are not limited to purely professional matters, but deal with more personal concerns. For example, to help a colleague who was finding it difficult to answer her daughter’s questions about the faith, the Church, and so on, I suggested that we could read the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church together, and comment on it. For the past few months we have been taking advantage of the day we both work in the same place to take a lunch-break together which often ends up in a short prayer in the University chapel. And so, little by little, she is coming closer to God.

Every day, my work and the people I meet there have a place in the Holy Mass. Next to Christ’s self-offering, I place all the day’s adventures and pray for the intentions of each person, while thanking our Lord for bringing me to know this beautiful path which is Opus Dei.