My entire body shivered and my heart wept when news of young children becoming the latest victim of grenade attacks in Bangkok last weekend come to light. As the week came to a close, I felt such heaviness in my heart as the news confirmed that the attacks had claimed 2 more innocent lives of a 4 year old boy and a six a year old girl who happened to be at the wrong place and the wrong time. The attack happened right in the heart of Bangkok, in broad daylight and an area popular with locals and tourists alike.

What made the news more devastating was the fact that the two kids were siblings and just like that, a father  has lost his children through no fault of his own. The image of the father mourning his kids have been splashing all over Thai media and each time I came across his image, my heart broke into pieces. The first image I saw on Twitter with his silhouette back to the camera when he was in the hospital was something I could not forget. The image was haunting, and the sadness is beyond words. I can only imagine how tough it will be  for him to go through his day knowing he will never see his kids again.

Deep in my heart, I wish I could reach out to him…but I don’t know how or for what. I could almost feel his pain, god! I feel his pain. It must not have been easy for him to come to terms with things that had happened suddenly. I could only hope that he finds the strength to move on. I also hope that the media would just respect his space, leave him alone and stop publishing his pictures all over.

For Nong Ken and Nong Cake, may your souls rest in peace.

The violence have become rather sporadic in the recent days and the situation a lot more volatile than it has ever been. Despite the carnival-like atmosphere at the rally site, it is not a safe place. If anything, it is an area one should avoid if one has no immediate business to be there.

Life still goes on as normal in the area where we live, but I’d be lying if I say I’m not worried about random attacks. After all, a grenade does not discriminate.

Let’s just hope that this madness will stop soon.