What Speechless Feels Like

Honestly? I didn't really think about it too much. I mean, I knew it was going to be huge - after all, it's not like it's the biggest university library in the world for nothing - but I had absolutely no idea that it was going to be like what I saw today.

I suppose that there aren't that many people in the word who can be struck dumb by books. But it's not as though these are just ANY books. They're dusty volumes hundreds of years in age, stored in a building whose interior is too beautiful to describe. Even I, who love words above so much, cannot come up with a description good enough, nor vibrant enough. I am at a loss. As I walked among all the books, I was struck by the fact that even if I sat down at that moment and started reading, and even if I never ever stopped, it would be physically impossible for me to read all of the books in that library before I died. It's an interesting feeling, the first time you experience sheer magnitude. Some people feel it as they gaze up at the millions of stars in our solar system; others feel the impact of size when they see the ocean, thinking of all the other shores those same waves touch. And me? I felt it when I looked at those books. Go figure.

Things like that keep hitting me here. The air simply crackles with brain activity. Today, I took a walk with a girl from my journalism class who is an athiest; we discussed our different views, explaining to one another how we feel about life and faith and that being called God. My roommate Sheema? Her parents had an arranged marriage. Their marriage was only the second time they had met. Sheema's not sure if she'll have an arranged marriage; she seems to expect it, and it doesn't faze her one bit. Quite a change in philosophy for a girl who is convinced that true, pure love is the only reason for marriage.

I wish that you all could experience this place like I'm experiencing it. The classes, the dining hall (Annenberg), the amazing Widener library, the people... it's better to see than to hear about.

Well, I'm off. Night all!

Natalie