A POEM FROM A DEAR PATRON

Sr. Mary Agnita Coakley, a long time patron of the Red Bank Public Library and a revered member of the community of Red Bank and St. James Parish, passed away recently. Not until her death did I realize she was a published poet - and that she wrote several poems about the joys of the library! I feel some regret that I didn't get to tell her how much I am enjoying her poetry. Here is just one of her poems

LIBRARY QUESTERS

Row on row books stand waiting, inviting
All who come, discover between
Covers every kind of treasure, would
You be a sleuth seeking to solve a mystery
A captain on a ship tracking down pirates
Explorers of space and beyond going
Between planets, moons, comets, stars
Seeking an answer to the origin of life,
An archaeologist trying to unlock ancient
Mysteries that have defied solutions,
A romanticist seeking tales of love tried, true
A would be traveler seeking foreign ports, places
Beckoning, intriguing, must be seen first hand,
A scary story reader before bedtime,
A ghost story teller to frighten unsuspecting listeners,
A teller of folk tales giving glimpses into the past.

For those who would uncover its riches by
Expanding knowledge, enjoying flights of fancy, a
Visit to the library is the present touching the past
Meeting the future in ways yet unknown, all this and
More await questers who would seek its treasures