today i was reminded of the little library that propped up along the corner of balagtas & archimedes streets in barangay la paz, makati.
it's called the reading club 2000. it serves street children & other youths who do not have the capability to buy their own books. so the owner decided to open the library to anyone, including renting a book, for free!
it was not far from our place then. i had to move out & i had 3 boxfuls of books that i won't need anymore (or so i thought).
i donated one box containing my old harrisons IM, robbins patho, williams OB, saddock & saddock psych, among other medical texts. the owner of the place wasn't available then so i just left them outside. i wonder if the owner got hold of the books or someone got onto them first?
i just felt sad that the place is almost rundown & dilapidated. i presumed the electricity went bust - there was a meralco bill tacked on one of the shelves that had a disconnection warning dated a month prior. more importantly, i saw some books that were not dusted & will most probably start decaying if not attended to.
one lesson i learned from this experience: it's difficult to run a charitable NGO, but i truly admire the initiative.
