What has this world come to?

So today  was a sad day. There was a man who hijacked a bus full to tourists in Manila, and unfortunately 6 of the 15 are now dead.

I guess this is kinda an eye opener. I mean these people from Hong Kong were on a holiday in the Philippines . . . and now they are gone.

And the scary thing is, that it seemed like a random attack. It just so happened that the tourist bus was there at that moment, and it was that bus that the gun man decided to hijack. It could have been any other vehicle, and to think that a lot of my extended family live in the same city scares the hell outta me.

Philippine police stormed a bus on Monday on which a sacked former police officer was holding 15 Hong Kong tourists and local media reported the hostage-taker had been killed.

The gunman, identified as 55-year-old Rolando Mendoza who was armed with an M-16 assault rifle, had stopped the bus, which initially had 25 people on board, across a wide road in Manila’s biggest park on Monday morning.

Mr. Mendoza’s brother, Gregorio, told a local TV station that his brother was upset by his dismissal from the force. Local media said he had been sacked for reasons including extortion, and due to his sacking he had lost his retirement benefits.

 

And to think that all this happened from this morning, and I only found out about it when I got back from uni really made me think. That a lot of things can happen, so we gotta live life how we want to because God forbid, anything can happen to us or our loved ones within a matter of moments.

Keep positive. Live life the way you want to, without any regrets.

Surprisingly there were only a few status updates about it on fb. And one particularly caught my attention which was written by my younger cousin who lives in the Manila. She emphasised how furious and disappointed she was with her country, the society and the mess that’s happening over there. I guess she might also be referring to the Philippines and its reputation for being corrupt in the government, leadership and things like that. So i guess this gunman’s selfishness in killing those people can be due to his country’s mess and hardship. 

Tonight I’m going to pray particularly for the people of Manila and the families of those who were killed. It’s a terrible feeling knowing that these things are happening, and it feels as if everything over there is just so out of control that nothing much can be done. I lift my prayers to God, to look after the people of the Philippines, as well as the leaders there. That they may resolve the many issues they have been facing for quite some time now, and attempt to move forward to a country that it more peaceful.

And I also pray for my family over there, as well as my family in other countries like in America and New Zealand. This same cousin I know will always be alright, because she is surrounded by people who only have great love for her. And I pray that she in particular is doing well because I know how hard it is to live away from her mother, who im sure is always thinking about her.

Tonight I also watched this show Secret Millionaire. And the lady in it was 29 yrs old and left school at the age of 13 but still managed to become successful as evident by the huge company that she started. They showed her wardrobe and i was like OMGSH it was like incredible, colour coded shoes and a rack full of jewellery and headbands of every colour you could think of! And she went out to a small rundown town in Melbourne ‘undercover’ looking for people in need to her great help. It made me think that maybe one day i can push myself to achieve my dreams and return help out people in need. And i promised myself that if I do become some great business woman, I will treat every human being I encounter with great respect and realise that they are individuals with their own story and challenges. I mean I don’t want to dismiss someone like the gunman in today’s tragedy, if there will be huge consequences that will lead to greater suffering to other people.

 

During the show I also got a phone call from one of my close friends that I met earlier in the year at my YFC entry camp. When I think about it, the first time I met him he was kinda intimidating. He’s pretty big, as in like those American footballer with big guns lol. But he continues to surprise me. Because I’ve started to get to know him better in the last months, and realised that he is a sensitive guy, and has big dreams that I know will happen. Like the many people I have met this year through YFC, he is always taking the time out to listen to you and your stories or whatever may be stressing you out. Yet I often forget that he, and the many other people and leaders, also go through a lot of stress and challenges. They look after us, but sometimes we forget to check up on em to make sure that they are doing well too! I just thank God that I have met people like him who I know I can always count on. 

So yeah I guess I better get back to my Websystems presentation which hopefully is not going to happen tomorrow because I really need to catch up on it and make sure that I actually know what I’m doing.

Praise God for the people I have met this year and have always taken interest in the things I say and do. Praise God for a family that isn’t really going through many hardships, unlike many families out there who are worse off. Praise God for my extended family, many in particular have changed me in many ways (and to think what the year so far would’ve been like without them , is just insane because they are heaps awesome :) ). Praise God for my friends, not only the ones that I have met this year, but also the ones I’ve known for years now. Because of them I have learnt a lot of things, through the fights that we might’ve had and the relationships we have formed. Praise God for University. I know I have had mixed feelings about UTS and the course I’m currently doing, but praise God for I haven’t really had many great hardships. Thank God for my education for I, unlike many other people, are privileged to be studying and so may I be reminded to lift nothing but my best to Him each day, and always strive for excellence. 

Because He deserves nothing but the best!