【我的故事】《观国家图书馆记 A walk in the national library》|林颖昭 Amelin |

(scroll down to read the English version)

我妹拉着我的手，兴致勃勃地嚷嚷，去国家图书馆吧，我想去见识见识。我也接着无聊星期六没事做，点头答应了。国家图书馆，也不是第一次想去见识一番，以前都在他们关门的时候光临，第一次是在星期日，第二次则是因为公共假期。我记得我还是小学生时，老师告诉我国家图书馆有多好，闲来无事，她便带着两个孩子到国家图书馆浸浸书香之气，即不会浪费宝贵光阴，又让孩子培养阅读爱好。
思云不禁带我回到过去，对呀，这个去国家图书馆的种子也在很久以前就种下了，只是被藏在脑子里深处的角落，一直懒于理会。
我记得要经过很长的一座天桥，这是我去过了图书馆大门口两次以后长的记性。
不说找了好久才找到的入口，也不说稍逛了的人烟稀少的门口的义卖会。话说我们一进入了大门口就哇的一声叫出来了。
真的很大叻。。。那个楼梯好大好美呀。。。不愧是国家图书馆。。。
是，是赞美的话语，可是我们还没有上楼去。
里面的空气吹得好冷好冷。我们由着一层一层的楼梯往上爬去。
当我一见到那些书柜，瞬，让我想到了翠岭镇国中的图书馆。那书柜们怎么长得如此之相似呢？不说不说，接下来闻到的就是一股常年收冷气灌溉的地毯香。那种你进快倒闭的老年电影院所闻到的浓郁地毯加臭袜子的香味。一样的。
让我突然间对我刚才的赞叹声，升起一股想挽回的冲动。是政府的，就是如此无二般模样吗？是，和我国中图书馆长得太，像，了！不过大了几倍而已。那椅子，那桌子，那窗帘，那厨壁，那柜台。。。。。。每一个细节一一载入我眼睛，我有股欲哭无泪的崩溃。不美的。都不特别的。
接下来，当我要说起书籍时，你们便将受一受我的怒气。图书馆的是怎么可以不包？！！！！！！不是少包了几本，而是一本都没包！！！！！！！我的眼泪一滴一滴的坠落到地上。我轻轻地抚摸着我心爱的同族们，可怜他以国家图书馆为家。我家的宝贝们比你们幸运多了，幸福多了。
在我家里，每一本，每一本，被买回来的书，都被我第一时间包起来。因为我手心易出汗，很容易便把是弄湿，旁边不用多久就坏了。
我问我妹妹，为什么我看到这里的书没胃口？她说，因为这里的书都比你老啊。为什么他们不好好保养那些书？因为这些书这么大量，而且是要放很久很久的。我说，就是因为要放很久很久，更应该好好，好好地保存妥当啊！如果书本都变得不漂亮了，谁还想来翻阅呢？
没有看见一个图书管理员的踪影。
整栋建筑物像是多年没打理，许多角落以损坏生灰生蜘蛛网。
椅子桌子的数目远超小鸟几只的马来人，还有稀有物种般存在的一两位印度人和华人，还有像错觉一般存在的一位外国人。
我随意拿起书架上的一本书开始翻阅。突然闻到一股让鼻子十分难受的气味。我问妹妹，你闻到吗？蛤，什么。那个臭味啊。嗯，好像有。咦？我大失惊色，不会是。。。我手上的这本书吧？！
！！！！真的是！！！！！
我迅雷不及掩耳的速度把它放回原味。
那是一股发霉的香气。湿气长年累月的积存在书纸的结果。难怪，那冷气开得那么凶猛。
致使霉味已经被完完整整地提炼出来了。
墙上写着，最适合保存书籍的温度为16～19℃。
屁啦！
书架上新老不一地排列着，残破失容颜的与新加入新生放在一起。许多也因为没包而边破了。
走在书廊间，我想要回家。
一个连基本护书能力都没的图书圣地。。。
妹，我们回家吧。

A walk around the national library

She held my hand tightly and shout into my ears, please please please ,let us go to the national library alright? I thought for a minute and nod, since this is a boring Saturday I will let in.

This is not the first time me and my sister have the thought of visiting the national library ,in fact we had been there twice. With the gate closed in our face . First time is because of Sunday, the second time in vain is because of the public holiday. You can see how clever we are.  

I remembered the first time I heard of the national library. I was very young. My teacher said she liked to bring her two children to visit the national library because it got them to emense in the sea of books , and helped them to build the love towards books. Such a very beneficial way of managing time.

My mind unconsciously bringing me back to my childhood. It got me to realise the seed of visiting the national library had long planted in my mind. I just didn't bother to move my bud.

I remembered a long bridge before arriving the library. This is the prove of the twice failure before .

Ignored the fact that we had found difficulties finding the entrance and despised the bizzare having that day in front of the library with minimum crowd. At last we manage to stand by the big glass sliding door ,the beautiful entrance. And we couldn't hold ourselves burst out a big heart full WOW.

It's so Enormous...The stairs are so gorgeous...... No wonder this is the national library......

Indeed we were full of praise and so in love ,but wait until we get to see the real library.

The air was icy icy cold ,we climb along the stair case.

The moment I spotted the bookshelf , I thought I had some hallucination. The view in front of me is like I'm watching my school library , the mighty SMK Cheras Perdana.

Then I quickly switched my attention to my nose, an odor of old carpet in a room lack of air circulation.

The kind of air you breath in a 20 year old cinema.   

It's the same.

I suddenly regretted to have been so amazed a few minutes ago, disappointment is the truth.

Is it the more alike when they are both belonged to the government?

Yes , the library was like madness a brotherhood with my old school library, so clone-like were they.

The chairs, the table ,the book rack, the counter, the curtains......

Every details downloaded into my eyes . Impossible. I have had the urge to cry tears like Alice ,flowing out in my pool of tears.

Not beautiful ,not special. OUT OF MY EXPECTATION ！！！

Next, my fellow readers would have to tolerate my rage. What's on earth is happening I saw all the books in front of my eyes had not been wrapped!!!!! Not that they missed out a few, ALL of they NAKED without Baju!!!!! My poor eyes swelled with tears again.

I ran my hands gently upon my same species, commiserated that they called the national library as home. My honeys and babies at home were far way luckier than them.

At home,  I treat my books with immense care, I will promptly get into the action of wrapping the books after I gone home from the bookstore. Due to the sweat that perspirated like fountain on my palms, it is with massive chance that I will wet my paper-made books, especially at the edge, and you could as well easily predict what my reaction will be.

I asked my sister , why I feel sick being here. She said because the books here is maybe far more older than you. Why don't they well taking care of the books. Because they are so huge amounts of volumes ,and they are supposedly to sit on the same spots for some countable  decades. I said well, if they are to be stay for so long a time , the libririans having more a responsible to attending great treat to the books.

I can't spot a shadow of librarians.

The whole building felt like didn't brush up and swept up for many years. Corners on the high ceilings grew spider webs , and the walls and ceilings and floors were of an old house without renovation. Could I say a poor library?

The amount of tables and chairs were far more outstanding than the occasionally people we bumped into at the corner of  some bookshelves.

I casually picking out a book that trapped my eyes. In a shocking moment , a repugnant smell pricked my norsrill. Do you smell it ? I ask my sister. What? The smelly odor. She sniffed a bit , said,  yea, kind of. And then I realised something , are you not kidding me, the smell drifted from the book in my hand. Damn!!!!!!!!!!

Without second hesitation , I returned the book to its original place. That is a smell of old wet log that spruts mushrooms out of its wetness. The excessive moisture in the air had intruded into the paper thin that any possible microorganisms might live inside the book.

Can't blame, the air conditioner blew like Antarctic, that encouraging the books to cook up their rotting fragrance. On the wall wrote :the most suitable temperature for the well being of books 16~19℃
Not at all !

The books on the racks, regardless of the olds and news,  mostly seen jumbled up together . Some books were so old (or because of the speedy aging environment and the nakedness of them) that their body untangled ,face ruined . Indeed very hurtful a scene to the eyes, and can be guessed being repaired by a rough man's hand.

Strolled along the corridors of book shelves, I'm thinking of home. A palace of book without the essential knowledge of taking care a book.
My dear sister, can we go home now?

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