Today I happened upon a rousing look at the Library of Congress made by NARA in 1968. My favorite quote:

And so the work of the library is carried beyond its walls. In the very process of organizing knowledge it functions as a creative force. A strange treasure house, whose guardians feel most successful when they are sharing the treasure with the whole world.

This is why I became a librarian – because everyone can improve themselves, and the world, by sharing knowledge.