EVEN with the advent of digital media, books always have its way of forming relationships until now.
It's one of the best ways to pick up connections from other people.
Aiming to start a bond among Muslim women, Cheema Español, owner of Darussalam Bookshop in Davao City, organizes a book club and plans to host a monthly gathering in her store in Roxas Avenue.
In an interview, she shared, "it was just a spur of the moment when we hosted our first meet-up on November and I am delighted that everyone who went really shared a lot about themselves even if we are from different walks of life."
Muslim women heard of her event from her Facebook page, and went from as far as Mati City, Davao Oriental and Cotabato to Davao City just to join the intimate meeting.
"The discussion became very fruitful and the atmosphere was very welcoming as well. It was turned to a support group and we were happy about it," she said.
This December 10, she's once again inviting Muslim women to join the gathering inside her store over cups of tea and cupcakes.
"We wanted to do it again because it was as if, everyone needed someone to talk to and during the gathering- we became what everyone needed," she added.
Since it’s opening on July 16 last year, the bookstore has since been ordered by Muslims around the Philippines. They already have buyers and distributors from Marawi, General Santos City, Mandaluyong, and other parts of Luzon.
Darussalam bookshop is a multilingual international islamic publishing house with the main headquarters in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It has branches in different continents like United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, France, and South America. Asian branches include United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, and India.