Why a Green Kangaroo?
Some years ago someone here gave me a copy of "The One in the Middle is a Green Kangaroo," by Judy Blume. It's a story about a middle child (I'm not) who played a green kangaroo in a school play. The book has long since been passed along to someone else, but it gave me a way to think about my place in the world -- at least my professional world.
I am the one in the middle -- surrounded by executive directors and directors, one foot in the library world and one in the association world, at the crowded and often noisy intersection of very diverse flows of information and ideas. Never boring. Often challenging. Complex. Simple. Surprising. It all adds up to a "green kangaroo."
"Middleness" has an interesting, slightly amorphous quality. Sometimes it means being "extra hands"; sometimes it means taking charge; sometimes it means connecting and getting out of the way. Sometimes it's easier if it's not too defined.
You plant yourself in the middle of the intersection and you see lots of paths leading away. Once you follow enough of them, you find that they do cross and re-cross. Threads from an association executives' list discussion about "community" are relevant to "library 2.0." Discussions of ICT skills in the education world are relevant to instruction in a library or to web design.
One of the first indications of converging interests is the reading list. Often the same book recommendations come from people who would surely see themselves in very different contexts. Book recommendations show the commonality in that diversity.
As I've explored the "biblioblogosphere," I've been struck by several things. First has been the vitality and generosity of the professional exchange taking place. I have shamelessly grabbed references to other blogs and web sites, to interesting papers and new books to read. Second has been the reflectiveness of many posts -- the thoughtful consideration of context, of related issues and concerns, of evaluation. Finally, there is the personal voice -- with revelations of frustration, happiness, anger, optimism.
Now, this last one is difficult for me. My world has largely been one where "transparency" refers to openness about budgets, processes, goals. It isn't that those things aren't important to this new view of transparency -- just that they're not sufficient. Listening to Michael and Jenny and Meredith and others, it becomes clear that transparency also means letting personal "authenticity" show through. When you've spent a lot of hours "ghosting" carefully correct letters or compiling factual "no-personal-opinions-here" reports, that's hard. Still, it seems important -- and may be fun.
So, I'll set the "green roo" down in the middle of this intersection as a reporter, perhaps as an instigator, a sharer of stories, and, with luck, a collaborator. Come join me here in this intersection.
