Excavating the National Archives and Thinking of Librarians

I'm back to doing archival research following the end of the archaeological impact assessment at Intramuros in which I volunteered, seeing it as an opportunity to practice my excavation skills. (I do admit that I suck at troweling and I have yet to master the art of walling.) Also, it's my way of training myself in recording which is of course the most important thing we do as archaeologists.

That experience in urban archaeology deserves an article on its own. Right now, the focus is archival research.

I used to dream of being a researcher, locked up in a library browsing old brittle documents with a magnifier, going to different libraries, checking out their collections, consolidating the data gathered and writing a report. I guess being a bibliophile and an avid reader inspired me a lot. Besides, I do think that people who read are hot. (I can just imagine Nico Robin of One Piece, and the girls of Read or Die, and also, the yokai in Bungaku Shoujo right now and I miss watching anime... SIGH!) But along the way, I developed into an adventure-seeker and now I am training to be an archaeologist, though I am happy to have been assigned to go to the National Archives where I feel most at home surrounded by books and yellowed papers. (Never mind the dust, my lungs seem to have adapted well since I have been visiting The Stacks at the Main Library since I was an undergraduate student.)

People may have negative opinions of libraries. Librarians tend to be strict, grumpy, and unfriendly. I do have my share of moments when librarians would reprimand me for misbehaving and for attempting to enter restricted areas. But these people, the librarians, they are the guardians of books and books I regard as friends, and this view of mine has never changed since I was young, thus my utmost respect toward librarians. Besides, viewing them in a negative way is unfair because most librarians I have met are warm and friendly. There are of course friendly ones who smile at me, probably because I frequent libraries and I already look familiar to them. But the one thing I love most about librarians is their willingness to help whenever I am in need of references when doing research, making access to information easier.

I remember a particular librarian in the Main Library who often smiles at me when she sees me. She's also the first ever librarian to have attempted to befriend me. When I'm busy and haven't visited the library for a long time, chances are, she'll ask me where I've been. There's one ugly day in my undergraduate years when a series of unfortunate events befell me but she asking me about my day made me feel better. That simple gesture certainly made my day.

(Come to think of it, I miss the Main Library...)

So anyway, today I went to the National Archives and saw the wonderful people there again. We researchers provide each other with information regarding our respective research. For instance, one does research on local history, I do research on both economic history and local history, one has an interest in cemeteries, etc. Interacting with fellow researchers is fun; you get to learn new things. Besides, joking around and having someone to talk to while doing research makes the work more bearable and enjoyable since archival research is no easy task and needs lots of patience.

But excavating the archives has been a good training ground for me.Not only do I get to use my knowledge of Spanish, I also get introduced to the usage of Spanish. Not only do I transcribe and translate documents, I also keep track of differences in orthography, semantics, and syntax. This makes me appreciate the dynamism of the Spanish language better.

I guess I'll be having another INC this semester. But what the hell, I am enjoying the learning process. There's just so much to learn in places other than the university. To hell with academic rules! It's time that students draft their own learning curriculum. I happen to prefer DOING AND THINKING rather than just thinking inside the classroom.

(Yes, dear readers, I do know that I write horribly, always typing as I think without bothering to check if my thoughts are coherent or not. Reflects my chaotic mind... But I have a pretty good excuse: I am also currently TRYING to finish a major paper as I write this....)