Respectfully disagree.

There are times in my life when people do things, say things, or make decisions that I don’t agree with, and I get a little upset.

I really shouldn’t, but it takes a lot of patience and maturity to respond to (mostly irrational) comments, actions, and decisions. Which is why I’m extremely impressed by the way that librarian Jamie Larue dealt with a recent library patron who challenged the inclusion of a book in the library because it dealt with gay marriage.

Instead of dismissing the patron, or even being taken aback by what seems (to me at least) a particularly ridiculous challenge, Larue wrote a letter that dealt directly with the patron’s issues. From his letter:

I think a lot of adults imagine that what defines a children’s book is the subject. But that’s not the case. Children’s books deal with anything and everything. There are children’s books about death (even suicide), adult alcoholism, family violence, and more. Even the most common fairy tales have their grim side: the father and stepmother of Hansel and Gretel, facing hunger and poverty, take the children into the woods, and abandon them to die! Little Red Riding Hood (in the original version, anyhow) was eaten by the wolf along with granny. There’s a fascinating book about this, by the bye, called “The Uses of Enchantment: the Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales,” by psychologist Bruno Bettelheim. His thesis is that both the purpose and power of children’s literature is to help young people begin to make sense of the world. There is a lot out there that is confusing, or faintly threatening, and even dangerous in the world. Stories help children name their fears, understand them, work out strategies for dealing with life.

Next time someone disagrees with me or challenges my decisions and actions, I’m going to definitely try and address that challenge with the grace, poise, and poesy that Jamie Larue demonstrated in his own response.

Do you have any other examples of this kind of poise in the face of challenge?