Musings: Life's better in the slow lane, and at the library

As more and more Long Island baby boomers enter the retirement phase of life, I’m noticing a slow-moving shift around me. Older people are not in a hurry. They take their time, either by necessity or by simply taking a moment to experience the world around them. I was recently approaching a traffic light that was green and had just turned to yellow when the car in front of me — an old-model Subaru — slowed to a stop.

My instinct was to get annoyed; I was in a rush. But then I thought: Maybe the driver was older than me, possibly retired, and out of the house for one simple errand. Perhaps she wanted to experience the day without hurrying, to enjoy the moment, even if it was just at a yellow stoplight.

I have been thinking a lot lately about our older population. As a librarian at the Bryant Library in Roslyn, I see how we serve a diverse population of all ages. We have been noticing an uptick in visits by the over-70 set, and we are here for them.

Besides our traditional services, we are helping and instructing parents and grandparents on how to use technology. That gift of a Kindle, iPhone or laptop is often a great mystery to them.

Not a day goes by that an older person doesn’t ask us to show them how to upload, download, print, send an email or fax a document — the list is endless. Our staff makes it our business to help. Consider us their surrogate kin — with the patience and fortitude that we may not have for our own families!

As I reflect on this role, I realize that I should have appreciated the random people in my own parents’ lives over the years — the people whom they came to rely on for help.

We are all in this together, getting through life the best we can, as we come up against unimaginable changes. So, the next time you get aggravated by an older person, think about what it’s like to walk in their shoes. And maybe offer a hand or, better yet, send them in the direction of their local library.

— Julie A. Klein, Roslyn