O-C Mumzie

On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, I go about my day's activities like clockwork--as most OCmumzies do. After finishing all my morning "bilins" with the household help, I leave for gym at 11am in time for my aerobics class from 12:15pm  to 1:15pm. After class, I promptly head back to the locker room, quickly freshen up and change (I prefer to take a long hot shower when I get home at 4pm) and by 1: 25, I leave the gym and begin my rounds of mall errands (an hour and a half to shop for groceries, pick up school supplies, have my watch batteries changed, meet a friend briefly for coffee, etc) in time to pick up my daughter at school by 3pm.

But today, and just this particular Friday, there was a small, unexpected 10-minute aberration in my schedule. Our class got carried away with some new abs exercises that Warren, our aerobics instructor, decided to extend the class for another 10 minutes.

Ten minutes behind schedule now, I focused on the remaining tasks on my to-do list. I hurried to the locker room to change, gather my things and check-out.  And then it happened... the building rocked and the sound of exploding glass and screams rang out. Glorietta 2 had just been bombed. And then a second blast.

At that point, we didn't know what it was. For some reason though, I feared the worse. My friend, Maricar, asked me what happened and I just said "I think it was a bomb". I guess it was the screams that told me. We peered though the 3rd floor gym lobby and saw the security guard rolling down the steel partitions. Beyond, we could see thick clouds of smoke (we learned later was pulverized cement) billowing from inside the mall and the screams of terror became more audible. I heard the receptionist say the blast came from nearby Timezone. My God! The children! With that thought, I knew I had to focus and look after my own safety. It was a mother's instinct in me that suddenly took control of my every move-- I needed to be safe for my own children.

Immediately I helped Maricar take control. After gathering my things, I helped her clean out her locker and carried one of her bags. I told her we should exit though the ground floor of the gym that would lead us directly outside the mall and into an open park. In seconds, we were out and joined the hundreds already gathered in the safety of open ground. I called my husband, my kids, my sisters and friends who mattered to me most just to let them know I'm okay. My car was stranded ar the car park with my driver so my husband sent his driver to pick me up at the packed Starbucks at 6750.

This OC mom made it to Sam's school after all, at 3pm sharp. There was nothing more comforting than her wide smile and warm hug when she saw I was okay. I was still a bit shook up but immensely thankful for the lifesaving 10-minute aberration in my schedule today. Had our aero class finished on time, I would have been on my way to Landmark supermarket when it happened--the first item on my to-do list.

I will not go into the senselessness of this crime anymore, of how sick and heartless its perpetrators must be. All I want to share in this post are a few lessons I learned first-hand today: the importance of good, old-fashioned prayer before we start the day. Never leave home without it;  that in any crisis, nothing pulls you together like your love for your family; and that aberrations, changes, deviations, and even inconveniences in life happen for good reason. Let's embrace them.

Take care everyone. On your way out tomorrow, say one for Him. For our families and all we love.