With Tito Ren's goddaughter Mimosa (younger sister of JR), who was also one of the performers in the singing recital...

Sad to say, ten-year-old Mimosa is at the moment confined at Health Sciences Centre because of a ruptured liver. Several days ago she fell from her bicycle, the steering handle hitting her stomach; didn't cause any external wound but the trauma had somehow ruptured her liver in half. Fortunately, the protective membrane covering the liver remained intact. Nonetheless, she is still under observation--whether or not she'd go under the scalpel.

Mimosa is a sweet, gregarious, and respectful girl. She and her family visit at the house once in a while for a videoke session.

I remember making her smile in awe when I told her that her name is also the name of a particular kind of plant popular in the Philippines known as makahiya, whose leaves fold up when touched.

Yup, the scientific name of the makahiya plant is Mimosa pudica.

In English, the Filipino adjective mahiyain means "shy or bashful."

I include Mimosa's quick recovery in my nightly prayers. Freak accidents like the one she got into always make me realize how humans seem so helpless when pitted against Nature.