Written by Shaina DCosta
Did Suppandi ever get his dream job? And why was Eeyore always melancholic?
We never found these answers.
And that is what children’s literature does to you. It spellbinds that part of you, making your childhood the most Odyssean era of your life. A much-loved genre that still slithers through time and makes way into our leisure moments.
Other than writing and creating, I inhabit a fondness for any idea that is oriented to art and expression. Since the very beginning, I had a very claustrophobic idea of a library. A place that is occupied by books and only just books. The rule was to be quiet at all times and have my eyeballs glued to the text and it made me quite restless. Eventually, in my primary years I had assignments at school which required us to research.,And the ‘internet’ came to my rescue. I was never once skeptical of choosing the internet over the wretched task of searching for something in a book from a library. I found that place to be below the capacity of my research. When it came to searching for an internship, I had a couple of places suggested. An editorial company, a book club or maybe content writing. My search gifted me with Bookworm. Initially, I was skeptical about interning at a library because of my personal stereotypes. But, when I saw the initiatives this space embraced, I knew this would be it and I have not regretted this decision since.
Bookworm is a literary sanctum true to its name but with a much deeper purpose. The team at the library were so warm and cheerful. The tour provided on the very first day got me all excited for this experimental two month journey. I was introduced to curating and planning sessions for young minds. Be it splashing emotions on bare canvas, endearing enactments with the children,or handpicking the finest story gems for merry sessions at the library. Over the years, Bookworm has sheltered a home to raw talents and ideas that are rooted far from just the privileged.
During my internship, I spent time across the Mobile Outreach Program(MOP) and the Visual Arts Program. Sujata and her incredibly steadfast team have moved the library to so many different corners of Goa through the MOP program and more recently through the Travelling Van. A feeling of immense mirth spiked my inner child when I saw a swarm of kids racing towards the library van, gathering around the books, excited to borrow and return books. I was in awe of their understanding of these stories and experiences.
Weekly, the Visual Arts Program gave me an opportunity to explore the most bizzare collages and peep into the takeaways of the day documented in little zines. Reading with the children perforated the feeling of déjà-vu in me. I am truly captivated by the workshops brilliantly organised with thoughtfully chosen themes, unconventional and enticing. It was a tremendous privilege to be a part of this library team. Even though a two-month internship journey seems like quite a brief experience, I saw that the library team works whole-heartedly to share the love for books with bright tender minds making reading the language of love!