Boarding the # train for the love of the library

by Jillian Viljoen

14 February is traditionally known as Valentine’s Day; a day of romance where couples express their love for each other. Stores are usually decorated with red hearts. Valentine’s cards, flowers, candy and other sweet things and romance is the order of the day. But should expression of love between people be the only celebration on Valentine’s Day? What about celebrating our love for our libraries?

With this in mind, the PMB UKZN library promoted the idea of love for the library with a “photo

booth” and a display board where students could write what they loved about the library. Staff handed out lollipops to students, encouraging them to participate in the initiative.

The idea was a resounding success, with students and staff taking selfies and posting them online. The tag line was “#Love the UKZN library”. Even the security staff got in on the action.

To add to the festive atmosphere, staff wore red, in keeping with the

Valentine’s Day traditional colour scheme. On the whole, the initiative was well received by students and staff. If you thought that libraries just contained books and were boring spaces, think again. Come and visit the library. You may just walk in on another exciting event.