As the white-haired librarian hand-stamped the due dates in the ten-year-old's choice, the little girl looked longingly at "The New Book" prominently displayed on the counter. She marveled again at the wonder of writing a book and having it honored like that, right there for the world to see.
That particular day, she confessed her goal.
"When I grow up," she said, "I'm going to be a writer. I'm going to write books." The librarian looked up from her stamping and smiled, not with the condescension so many children receive, but with encouragement. "When you do write that book," she replied, "bring it into our library and we'll put it on display, right here on the counter." The little girl promised she would.