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Boxes of books—moved and unpacked by many hands. That is how the present Rockbridge library began. Oh, make no mistake, Rockbridge always had a library, even before there was space for one. Great books have always been a defining thread in the culture of Rockbridge. It’s just that the books had to be placed on carts, in corners, on classroom shelves or tables, or wherever they could be safely tucked away and retrieved for use at suitable times. Now, however, over 10,000 books line the shelves of the school library, at the ready. The library still feels like a new attraction to many upper school students since the grand opening in September of 2022. Many grammar school students, on the other hand, will retain no memories of school without a library. As alumni wandered the halls before Christmas break during the Captain’s Cup, a few stepped into the library and one declared, “I am so jealous they have a library!”  We don’t have books for the sake of having books, however. Stories bring us closer to one another and closer to our Savior. They bring us further “in.” As Aslan invited the children to come “further up and further in” in C.S. Lewis’ The Last Battle, come inside the library doors with me for a few moments to hear some stories.

As I step into the library each morning, flipping on the lights or entering to the sounds of beautiful music emanating from the instruments of rehearsing Rockbridge orchestra students, I am struck by the sight and smell of books—nostalgic memories flooding in from childhood days of library visits. These early-life visits being filled with wonder at what the pages hold from each book sitting on a shelf; imagining what journey each story will allow me to partake of or what tidbit of interesting information I can garner. Skip ahead a few years in memory to working in my university library…hoping during my shift that I’ll have some slow time in order to have a few minutes to comb through books in the special collections department or turn through the pages of a century-old newspaper…the corners of my mouth can’t help but turn up into a small smile as I pass through the Rockbridge library doors. After setting my things down, I retrieve the books that have been returned in the book drop, sort through books that have been donated, and collect the handwritten checkout slips, thrilled that the library has been used even during the “off hours.” 

I think of the many anecdotes that have occurred over the past couple years in the library with students. 

• I think of a kindergarten girl asking, “do you have any books about pink princesses?” 
• Or, the 1st grade boy asking, “when are we going to get more books about snakes?” 
• There are the instances of juniors or seniors telling me about their thesis topics and why they chose them. 
• There’s the 9th grader’s eyes lighting up when they discover how many books we have about World War II! 
• Then there’s the 3rd grader asking if we have any stories about dogs—she left the library with Because of Winn Dixie, only to come back a couple weeks later saying, “I love this book! As soon as I finish it, my mom said we could watch the movie together!” 
• Then there’s a new upper school student perusing the library shelves and saying, “I love this series! I am definitely bringing in some books to donate!” 
• Another instance is when a 2nd grader found a book on the shelf that had been consistently checked out by other students and exclaimed, “It’s finally mine!!!!” 
• One of the sweetest things is seeing students in the hallway or after school saying, “Hi Mrs. St. Cyr! How’s the library?” 
• There are dozens of other student stories, but I’ll end with a favorite. A junior kindergarten mom was in the building and expressed her thanks for our library. She said her daughter LOVES when her class visits the library each week. She told me she had been playing “library” at home with a table to check out books and had placed a bucket beside the table to serve as the “book return.” Oh, my heart. 

I can’t help but share how amazing the Rockbridge faculty, staff, and community are as well. Through interactions and observations, I have experienced first-hand what it means to be part of a Christ-centered community.

• I think of Sam Ostransky bringing in theology classes and excitedly teaching them how to use Bible commentaries. Then he’ll stop by the library regularly to check out books for his small children at home—never neglecting to spend a moment at the library desk to give me an update on how my own children are doing in his classes.
• There’s Lysa Lytikainen or Caroline Master who spend a few minutes of work or a lunch break to get a moment by the sunshine streaming through the library windows. I absolutely love that Caroline is frequently pulling books off the shelves that she has looked up through the online library catalog prior to visiting. 
• There are conversations with Andrew Menkis about Lewis or Tolkien. 
• There’s Melanie Kaiss or Cheryl Mole bringing Mark Campbell into the library to check out books from his favorite Magic Treehouse series.
• There’s Bob Schingeck asking me to stage a joke with him at the circulation desk in order to elicit a giggle from a visiting class and brighten their day. 
• There’s Matt Seufert, who provided me with the perfect scripture to use when I unexpectedly had to speak at a funeral. 
• There’s Jacque Touhey, instrumental in the foundation of the library, checking in with wonderful ideas for helping the library thrive. 
• There are Heidi Stevens and Laura Mathisen using their artistic and design gifts to discuss beautiful ways to make the library aesthetically pleasing to draw in students of all ages. 
• There’s Therese Cooley using her art framing skills to repair a picture in the library that would have cost hundreds elsewhere. 
• There are teachers who are at the ready and willing to help when I ask, “Can you bring your students to Story Time to share something they’ve learned?”
• When requesting recommendations for the book fair, there are book lists a mile long from Monica Godfrey or Matt Swanson. 
• There’s a discussion with Monica Ault before the book fair about her recommendation of Anna Karenina and her love of the often difficult but profound Russian literature. 
• There’s Kerry Anne Ward inviting me to a book club made up of mostly Rockbridge folk—where discussing Don Quixote or Kristin Lavransdatter with a savory treat in hand and a glass of sangria on the side just might be a little glimpse of heaven. 
• There’s Stephen Unthank recommending publishers from which to request donations—and then receiving donations of many books from them! 
• There’s Gretchen Geverdt continually bringing in donations because she makes it a point to go through books that the public library is disposing of to search for treasures. 
• There’s Shannon Reich, to whom God must have given scheduling magic, who makes sure all the library events are perfectly placed on the calendar so as not to interfere with other events.  
• There are beautiful moms who have used their time and gifts to make monthly story times special or design a gorgeous library bulletin board that evokes dozens of praises from passers-by. 
• There are multiple parents who have stopped in the library and asked for our wish list so that they can be on the lookout for books to purchase and donate.
• There’s the added benefit of being in the library when classes bring in speakers and hearing talks about amazing topics from people like Chip Crane, Stephen Fix, Bryan Grube, or Matt Chwastyk. 
• Being near the Beehive (library copy room)—may I please say that this active area is like no other workplace “water cooler” area I have ever witnessed? I’ve worked in several offices, and the places where people have the opportunity to converse are typically areas where people complain or gossip. The Beehive, however, is a place where there is uplifting conversation and offers of prayer and encouragement. It is a testament to how God is using this community. 
• Jerry Keehner wheeling in carts of books from his personal library for students to use. 
• An impromptu prayer time with Irma Cripe for a friend. 
• A beautiful word of encouragement from Kim Ramirez or Chris Phillips. It is difficult for me to stop telling tales without writing a book!

Hopefully, these stories brought you “further up and further in” into life in the Rockbridge library. I think of how Aslan revealed himself to the Pevensie children through their experiences. They were ultimately drawn into the BEST story. At the end of The Last Battle, Lewis speaks of this story: “…the Great Story which no one on earth has read: which goes on forever: in which every chapter is better than the one before.”  During a speech by Heidi Stevens at the library grand opening, she spoke of the time when the founding families of Rockbridge gathered together and what they envisioned. She said, “We longed for our children to recognize the great Story behind all good stories: the story of a King who is making all things right again and restoring his original pattern of what’s Beautiful, Good, and True.” May it be so.

Brenna St. Cyr has served in the Rockbridge library since its formation. She is currently pursuing her master's degree in Library Information Science and enjoys co-coordinating a food pantry at her church each week where she gets extensive community interaction. She has two children who attend Rockbridge, and she resides in Bowie, MD with her husband and children.

From our Library Grand Opening in September of 2022: