My sister recently shared a photo on Facebook of an old library card catalog. The caption read “This was Google in my day.”
The picture took me back to grade school when I learned how to use the card catalog. The brown colored catalog was the key that opened my world of learning. It was my partner in writing research papers and my guide to finding classic literature.
I remember the first time I went to the library to find the card catalog gone. In its place was a computer that housed the online public access catalog.
My world was rocked that day. The room started spinning, and I fell to my knees at the realization that life as I know it had forever changed.
I wailed in anguish. My dependence on this paper and pencil method was no longer available. It was all I knew. I loved the card catalog. I needed the card catalog.
My protests fell on deaf ears. The only thing the librarian could tell me was that times were changing.