I was a litttle surprised last night when my mother had a quite different greeting when I arrived.

The usual "Bakit gabi ka na?" or "Maaga ka yata." was gone, instead the question that greeted me was:

"Nabalitaan mo na ba?"

Upon learning of the incident at Edsa corner Ayala, I instinctively called up my sister who's working around the area to check on her whereabouts. My mother is worried sick eventhough she's quite used to us coming home really late.

I know for a fact that my sister seldom takes the Ayala-Edsa-Guadalupe route going home but it wouldn't hurt to double check - we can never tell. Few minutes later, she did arrive and became the next recipient of mom's peculiar greeting.

Newsbreaks and flash reports on tube were as shocking and disturbing as those scenes we usually see in Israel - Palestine conflict over the Gaza strip. The bombing also reminded me of the December 30 bombing of LRT. For the first time this year, I stayed up really late for the evening news, (the last time I did this was when FPJ passed away) and to have a more detailed and comprehensive view of the events that day.

Apparently, a series of bombings occured almost simultaneously in Davao and General Santos City. At least three were confirmed dead on the spot and at least twenty were injured when a bomb blasted through a passenger bus going to Alabang from Ayala Makati - blazing two nearby buses on its wake. In General Santos City, a bomb exploded outside Gaisana mall, which was planted on a tricycle killing five. A bus terminal was bombed likewise in Davao city. Another planted bomb was (thankfully) detonated in Paranaque City, said to be powerful enough to blast a whole building.

The alert level was raised to full security. PNP Chief on his statement had urged the public to remain calm and do their usual everyday activities while remaining vigilant and report any signs and whereabouts of suspicious - looking characters.Meanwhile, a group of bandits, had claimed responsibility over the bombings across the country - a Valentine's Day gift for the president, they said.

An officer of Makati Business Club said that recent events will have a huge impact in our economy. Stock exchange prices are expected to drop days following the bombing. Thanks to these militants, the peso will be dropping down again just when it's giving a good fight against the dollar. The security situation will certainly drive the investors away and the aftermath of all these - is too scary to even think about.

When bidding goodbye to your friends, we'll sometime jokingly say:

"Ingat. Ingat sila sa iyo!"

Now, everytime I will say "Ingat kayo.", I mean every word.