I love the idea of people walking into a library space and this year at Bookworm the numbers were high. We are in the old quarter of Panjim between the historic fountain and the legendary chapel and we are a library. So people do pop in and browse, walk through the rooms appreciate our work , read a book , chat awhile and such. However as I look back on this year , I wanted to write about people who visited and left something of themselves with us – intentionally or not .
Early in the year , David Vale an English language trainer and gentle human being, made his way to Bookworm to conduct a workshop with us on using story to teach English. I decided that David should see our work in schools and that came to pass. We both sat down to talk about the visit and David pulled out a slip of paper that had 16 comments about our work, the first one was congratulatory. I listened raptly and resolved early in the year to use 2019 to grow stronger. It was a good way to start our year, to make more explicit what we think we are doing and to ensure that we are doing just that. David held meaningful sessions with the larger team and reminded us about clear objectives and purpose which I know strengthened us further this year.
Dr Rama Mathew from Hyderabad came to review our work and it was a time of grace. We learnt so many things from Rama, we continue to draw on her for strength, inspiration and guidance but the most powerful aspect of our learning was in how Rama mentors and how respectful she is of process and place. All her suggestions and recommendations came with gentleness and genuine caution about trusting us to take ideas forward and it reminded me about mutual respect which is so important. I have tried to inbue that in our work as the team grows stronger.
We had two young ladies visit from New Zealand and we shared our work in the community with them. We also spent time sharing origin stories that we are collecting at Bookworm, determined to have a collection that documents how all of us are really a collective seeking answers to universal questions. Bonnie gifted us a wonderful Maori origin story to strengthen our collection further and remind us that stories will unite.
In the month of March, 2 research students from Azid Premji University, Karthika Vijayamani and Shruthi Chandrasekaran, spent 2 weeks at Bookworm, observing our community engagement at different sites and exploring their research topic on Mobile Libraries, through interviews, and interactions with the children, the community and the team. At the end of these two weeks, they shared their own observations and insights and following the completion of their project, also shared with us their final reports on the same. The outside perspective and nuances captured through their study allowed reflection on our own library practice, especially with regard to Community engagement. Shruthi also gifted us a stunning painting of the Bookworm library building, which is now our most loved capture of this library home.
The middle of the year was filled with a host of people who participate in all our programs either in schools, community or the professional development opportunities at Bookworm and we are oftentimes gobsmacked by how we are in the middle of so many people’s lives simply because we believe libraries are relevant. It is stunningly beautiful to ponder around this.
In October, we had the honor of welcoming artist and author, Jyoti Sahi, who facilitated a discussion around Myths of Central India, through his spectacular paintings, and transported us into story worlds of Central India.
An event that birthed at Bookworm this year, was a book exchange initiative started by Akbar Khan. Following a pilot in April, we had a number of successive events which brought together people looking to exchange books that they had read for something new and also to talk and get to know one another through the medium of books! Such fun to meet readers from different parts of Goa, all united as part of Akbar’s toastmaster community.
This year, we also had the pleasure of a visit from architect Donovan, who introduced us to the Doll House Project. This project, part of an international Initiative by Catja de Haas, involved creating miniatures doll houses out of shoe boxes, to provoke awareness on home and community. Donovan and three other facilitators, engaged our library community children of Cacra and Chimbel with this project and encouraged each one to create their own depictions of home. The children later visited the entire Doll House exhibit set up in the Museum of Goa.
We closed our year with the joy of young Sayuri who visited with her dad Ajay Noronha and charmed us all.
It was close to the end of the year that we had an unexpected visit from two public health doctors who work with the Cipla Foundation, our partners on the Library in School Program. It was at this meeting that I felt a potential resolution for 2020 surfaced. The good doctors were talking of palliative care, rehabilitative care and such and I realised that for us at Bookworm, what has been and is our sustaining care magic is the story. We need to privilege that more, take it to more children who are struggling with health – mental or physical and to more adults struggling with life. The story will see us heal and recover and renew ourselves and it is with that in mind that we hope to welcome 2020 and renew our vision from Bookworm.
Until next time,
Rama Mathew
This is definitely a rich report, rich because of the richness visiting people must have brought in , but more importantly because Sujata and her team make it rich. it’s amazing how subtly and astutely they turn every experience into one of rich learning. That’s what I’ve learnt from them. It’s true, humility and openness is key to learning and seeing richness in everything you see, hear, do and experience renders it abundantly rich!. Bookworm has plenty of it and I’m so happy to have been associated with some of its work. I hope to spend some of my life in Goa, not because of its beaches and greenery and that unspoilt ruralness this tiny state can boast of but mostly because I would like to read in the Bookworm library and learn some of the things they do that bring them to this level of passionate professionalism.(I’ve had to use some unheard of expressions because Bookworm is so special and nothing from the common vocabulary will do justice to it)
Rama