That clever little app called Timehop informed me this morning that as of today, I’ve been a real-live official librarian for three whole years. Three. Whole. Years.

Here I sit, three years later, still at the same desk, looking out at the same room full of books. And even though the chair is the same and the room is fairly identical, I have to take a moment to think about just how far I’ve come as a librarian and as a person in these three long short years. I have to warn you that the rest of this post is a shameless, not-so-humble-brag, but I promise you that it’s not something I’ll do often. I believe, though, that for anyone who is lucky enough to have a passion that is also their job, or for anyone who has done something of which they are proud, the occasional not-so-humble-brag is important. I think it’s important to celebrate yourself and your accomplishments every now and then, and that looking back on what you’ve done helps you move forward and continue to do more.

So there, you’ve been warned–unabashed pride and life as a librarian is straight ahead. If you’re not interested, stay tuned for Dewey Readathon Posts tomorrow! In the meantime, check out these bookish lists from BookRiot!

Without further ado: I am so proud of my profession. I practically shout it at people when they ask what I do. I am a librarian, I say, always hearkening back to my librarian idol Evelyn (I still know an embarrassing/awesome number of lines from that movie).

And the community of people! Every single time I meet someone who is ALSO a librarian, you’d think we were already lifelong friends. “I’m a librarian” “OHMYGOSHMETOO” “YOU ARE?! TELL ME EVERYTHING”. And it’s because we’re so excited about what we get to do, glad that there is a whole community of people out there who are doing the same thing. We are thrilled and honored to  work with our communities and our youths. We are proud of ourselves and each other.

I’m proud of what I do every day and what I’ve accomplished over the years. The library has iPads! iPads that I wrote a grant for and won! There are EIGHT Little Free Libraries around our community because of another grant (and a lot of dedicated work from my Father In Law and Husband). I created and maintain an annual Fairy Tale Festival that’s attended by over 300 people every year. I have a successful summer reading program that has attendance of at least 20 kids per program. I have a story time that children love. I can make children laugh when I tell stories, I can sing and dance and play with the best of them. I have created innumerable crafts for kids and have become a pretty expert Pinterest user. Kids love the library I work at. There are toys and Legos and puzzles and games. There are BOOKS. So many books.  Books that kids jump up and down with excitement for. Books that they hug to their chest while grinning from ear to ear.

I can find a book for a patron even if they only know that the cover was blue and there might have been a bear. I can set up an electronic device with library access in under 5 minutes. I can find a book on our shelves without even looking it up first because I am that familiar with our collection (though yes, I still get occasionally stumped, because there are so. many. books). I have started a very well attended book club for grown-ups. I have gotten kids and teens hooked on books that are my favorites, too.

I have gushed with people young and old over characters and plot lines. I have watched children learn to read, watched them laugh and smile at the words on the page. I have high-fived them for sounding out extra long words. I have picked them up and spun them around when they arrive and before they go. I have listened to their too-fast feet coming running down the stairs in their excitement to be here. I have watched parents smile while their kids sing along to songs and dance along, too.

I have made life-long friends. I have read hundreds of books. I have attended workshops and conferences and Book Expo America. I have had good days and bad days and many in-between days. And three years later, I still get to go to work every day at a place filled with books. It is my job to read to, play with, laugh with kids. It is my job to create programming that encourages a love of literacy. It is my job to make books exciting and to make the library a happy and welcoming place.

There are days that I forget to count my lucky stars. There are days I forget how hard I’ve worked to get where I am. Today is not that day. Today, I am a librarian.