John never gets tired of protecting his children

That conflicting feelings of a parent — a desire to both shield and to set free — are evident in how John Estrada talks about his being a dad to his children. Fathering is one role he enjoys and takes seriously whether in real or reel life.

John will never get tired of protecting his children no matter what. “It’s what I always tell them, that I will protect them always and forever. As a father, I guide them, lead them to the path that I know is best for them to take.”

For those not so familiar, John has five children, four with ex-wife Janice de Belen namely, Inah, Moira, Kaila and Yuan; and Anechka, with wife Priscilla Meirelles.

Similar to many parents, John has an attitude of understanding the value of letting his children take shape in their own time and space. He does not try to influence them in a way where they may lose their interest to continue to grow to the best of their abilities “because I know that each has a life of their own and a character or personality different from the other. So, I let them do whatever they want to accomplish and the most I can do is to be there for them all the time. My kids are my life.”

John is about to display the beauty of fatherhood to televiewers and the kind of love he has for his children through his character Victor Salvador in the GMA afternoon drama series Babawiin Ko Ang Lahat. He disclosed that he and Victor are very much alike when it comes to caring for a child.

The actor revealed that handling issues of kids and teaching them these days are very much different from his time. “I would have to say, mas mahirap kami i-handle nung teenager kami because I think today, with the technology and the Internet, sobrang advance na ang mga bata ngayon, they know a lot. Just a click on the phone or just Google search, everything you want to know is there unlike before that you really have to read everything. Kaya mas mahirap mag-alaga at magpalaki noon kumbaga ‘yung ABC noon mas mahirap kesa noon.”

What John is dreading to hear from his children is telling him is that they are ready to head to the altar to tie the knot. In fact, he already heard Inah talking about it.

“My eldest Inah is 29 but still, it was too heavy for me to hear her telling me that she’s ready to settle down at talagang parang malaking tinik na nilunok ko na talagang masakit. But then again, it’s inevitable because I know the time will come that all my children will get married. Wala akong kontra doon ganun talaga ang buhay.”

But before tongues start wagging, John would like to make it clear that Inah is not getting married yet. “Nasabi lang n’ya ‘yun but when the time comes na talagang mag-aasawa na s’ya, well, I hope it will last. I mean, ‘yung pagsasama ay maging forever,” he said.