A mother first

When Maricel Laxa returned to the country from the US in the late 1980s to pursue a career in show business, the local entertainment scene didn’t seem ready for her. First of all, she had a twang. Then, her hair was dyed brown – the shade of which was the color of a dead rat. Her biggest disadvantage, however, was that she was forever being compared to her mother, actress Imelda Ilanan, who was always in the most beautiful faces list in the late ’60s.

But all that changed soon enough. Her tongue eventually straightened out. Her hair returned to its natural dark color. And as if her fairy godmother worked on her overtime, she eventually metamorphosed into quite a beauty herself – although, in terms of physical features, she and her mother seem to belong to different molds.

But most important of all, Maricel developed into a serious performer and became the signature actress of Jose Javier Reyes. She was particularly outstanding in Ikaw ang Lahat sa Akin where she played the snooty and domineering wife of Richard Gomez. Then, there was Iisa Pa Lamang, which won for her the Best Supporting Actress trophies in the FAMAS and Star Awards.

By the early ’90s, she had completely become her own person and now, I even forget that she is the daughter of Tony Ferrer, one of the top action superstars of the ’60s.

Eventually, she married Anthony Pangilinan, had kids and became quite selective when accepting offers to appear in films. One of the few films she made as Mrs. Anthony Pangilinan was Minsan Lamang Magmamahal (with Maricel Soriano and Edu Manzano) which gave her the Gawad Urian Best Supporting Actress award in 1997.

Later, she also joined television and proved to be quite effective as the host of the Del Monte Kitchenomics portion in Eat Bulaga.

Not so long ago, she began writing a column on mothering for the Lifestyle section of this paper. It’s called Mommy Talk and it’s one of the columns I read in the Philippine STAR. Never mind if most of her topics do not concern me. In fact, this only proves how effective she is as a writer. Her columns on motherhood are read even by those who will never lactate or experience post-natal blues.

Maricel’s style of writing is no-nonsense. It doesn’t try to impress and overwhelm readers with big words that will make them run to the nearest dictionary to check their meaning. She writes from the heart, goes straight to the point and is very coherent. (Obviously, her talent for writing is something inborn because I don’t really think she underwent any form of training in this area.)

Then, of course, her column dishes out very helpful tips and pieces of advice on how to effectively run a home – surely a must-read for most young mothers.

As a columnist, Maricel has an edge over most other writers. Being a celebrity, she already has a built-in audience. She can write about her personal experiences and easily get people interested in reading them. In between those printed words, readers must be picturing her and husband Anthony in their minds running after the kids at the airport (when she gave tips on traveling), in restaurants (in the article Eating Time With Toddlers) and at the regular Sunday lunch reunions of the Pangilinans.

And then, there was a time Maricel wrote about her mother-in-law, Emma Pangilinan. Now, the Pangilinan matriarch is not just some ordinary mother or mother-in-law. She is supposed to be known in society circles (Bessie Badilla, a cousin of the Pangilinan kids told me so). Society matrons, however, are a dime a dozen – and this is not what makes me interested in her. What makes me curious about Mrs. Emma Pangilinan is that here is a mother who raised a large brood – a lot of whom became really successful in their chosen fields (Sen. Francis Pangilinan, for example). And then, we also have to remember that three of her kids married big and respected showbiz personalities (Sharon Cuneta, Gary Valenciano and, of course, Maricel Laxa). How she managed to raise children who excel in their respective professions really makes me curious about her.

Another interesting topic Maricel wrote in a past column is titled Taming of the Tongue. Here, she cautioned readers about being reckless with their words – about how tactless remarks may hurt people. This particular column stuck in my mind because a few days before it came out in the Philippine STAR, I interviewed Anthony in Startalk and needled him endlessly about him and Maricel being so prolifio when it comes to producing babies.

Then, out came Maricel’s column where she wrote about being offended every time people make unkind remarks about her being pregnant every year. For a very long time, I was under the impression that I offended Maricel (and probably even Anthony) with my careless remarks in Startalk and it was only last week when I spoke to her personally (to invite her to attend the Urian rites) that I was able to have some sense of relief. No, she said that she didn’t feel offended that time and that particular column was not an offshoot of what I said in Startalk. Whew!

Anyway, for those who failed to read her past columns or perhaps want to reread her writings, the good news is that Maricel has compiled everything into a book called Mommy Talk, The "Oh!s" and Oh No!s" of Motherhood.

The book – like Maricel’s writings – is no-nonsense. It’s very readable and very useful even to non-mothers.

I just noticed something amiss in this book. It has no section About the Author. Well, okay, it has – at the outside back cover. But it doesn’t mention anything about Maricel’s impressive achievements in the field of entertainment. Quite clearly, her slew of acting trophies is not her main source of pride and joy. Obviously it’s the love of her husband and kids that bring happiness and contentment to her life. And this, in my opinion, is what makes her an authority to come up with a book on this noblest profession of all – motherhood.