Every year, businesses are swarmed by college students looking for jobs to make money over their winter and summer breaks and as a junior in college, I know the desire to make money all too well. I have yet to face the stressful world of searching for internships, but I have been lucky enough to find a job in one of the most magical places: A bookstore. I know what you may be thinking: why is a bookstore so great, that sounds boring, what do you do all day? When you are lucky enough to work in a mom and pop bookstore in a small town, you meet wonderful people, have lots of time to read books you never knew existed and more than enough time to cater to your organization habits.
Growing up, I wasn't a huge fan of reading but if I found a book that I enjoyed, putting it down wasn't easy. I remember the first time I fell in love with reading and the world of literature. It was a rainy afternoon in my seventh-grade language arts class and we were receiving our first book of the year we would read as a class. Sitting in the front of the classroom, I vividly recall my teacher placing a small paperback copy of Anthem by Ayn Rand on my desk. The yellow and white cover that was simply printed with a lightbulb and black font held more excitement than I ever thought possible. I opened the book when I arrived home to complete my first assignment of reading a few chapters for the next class. I finished it in a few hours. I fell in love with how easily I escaped into the world of Anthem's story and I wanted to hold onto that feeling. From that moment on, my search for books that pulled me into a new world had begun.
As my love for books began to grow, I would find myself wanting to wander through bookstores. I made it my mission to never leave that store empty handed, and sometimes it took a lot of convincing to get my parents to purchase a new book for me that would potentially sit on my shelf for years. If you were wondering, 95% of the time I left the store with a book or two. Many times I wouldn't enjoy the books I picked out or I would be too busy reading a novel for school and couldn't find the time for pleasurable reading. High school definitely pulled me away from my excitement for new stories because of the dry assignments we were handed, but that all changed when I began my new adventure in college.
When I began my sophomore year of college, after a rough freshman winter break, I knew that I needed to find a job that would spark my interest, bring me happiness, and challenge me in a few ways. Luckily, I found my joy in a small bookstore just one town over from my home, owned by a woman that my dad has known for many years. I applied for the job, interviewed briefly and was hired. What I didn't know was that a magical world beyond what I already knew of was about to be thrown into my lap. Obviously, nerves set in due to the fact that I was learning new things, I was the youngest person working and I knew nothing about the books that were on the shelves. Luckily, the women I work with were wonderful and incredibly helpful during the training period. Now, a year and a half later, and going into my second summer of working in the store, I have grown to love so many things. To share just a few of those things with you is best done in list form so here we go:
1. The Peaceful, Quiet Time
Work can be really busy at times with lots to do, but the wonderful thing about being in a bookstore is that everything you have to do is relaxing. If we as a staff have tidied up the shelves, called customers about their orders, wrapped books, place new books on the shelves or whatever else is thrown our way, there is always some time to just sit and read a book. You're surrounded by them all day, why not just pick one up and browse?
2. Bookstore Dogs
The store I work in has an amazing dog who just brightens everyone's day. He belongs to the owner of the store and comes with her to work most days (unless he jumps in the duck pond and isn't allowed). Having a pet in the store brings smiles to many faces of customers that enter and keeps us staff members company when it gets quiet. He might get in the way because he is napping in front of the register, but we love him just the same.
3. Reading Advanced Copies of Books
The biggest perk of working in a bookstore is reading books that won't be on the shelves for months! Every month we receive a few boxes filled with books for us to read and potentially order if we believe they would do well in our store. Even if you have no interest, it is fun to say that you read a book before anyone else knew it was going to be published.
4. ChristmasTime
This is a tough one simply because it's a love - hate relationship. Christmas is the busiest time of the year. Although it is great for the business, it can be incredibly stressful with satisfying customers on time. The one thing I am grateful for in regards to Christmas time is that I learned how to wrap gifts really well. I can wrap a large amount of books in a short period of time and I actually have used this skill in other aspects of my life.
5. Grateful Customers & Eager Children
We live in a world ruled by technology, so working in a bookstore isn't always a place where you expect to see eager children. The most satisfying feeling and the thing that puts the biggest smile on my face is seeing a child walk up to their parent with an armful of books and beg to go home with all of them. It reminds me to have faith in younger generations that they will continue to appreciate the feeling of a book in their hands.
Customers are grateful a majority of the time, but in reality, some people are just not warm and fuzzy and that is okay! Even when you meet appreciative customers all day long, there are always those few who take the time to ask you your opinion on something that may not really matter to them, but they just want to have a friendly conversation. People are always in a rush and when they take the time to just talk to me about a book they read or are interested in why I wanted to work at a bookstore, it puts a smile on my face that stays there all day.
I could go on and on about all the things that I love about working at a bookstore, but there is one thing I am most grateful for. Every day I walk into work I know that I will be greeted with a smiling face, a freshly bound book with a spine that is waiting to be cracked, and illustrations that captivate you for hours. Those are all such beautiful things to be blessed with every day, but the biggest blessing I have received through this job is learning to embrace the little things in life and taking the time to slow down and just be. No matter what, even if the day is slower than I could ever imagine, I always remind myself to use that time in the magical atmosphere to just stop and appreciate the time I have to just be. Just read. Just breathe. Just observe. Just slow down.
Even if my journey with this magical bookstore doesn't last forever, I will forever be grateful for all that it has taught me. I now know that I will never just walk by a bookstore but I will always explore every shelf and take the time to slow down and be in that world.
Always.
