The entire school knew us to be the best of friends. I even gave her a nickname, "Roach" (which was inspired by her last name). We lived in the same village, walked to and from school together, spent weekends at each other’s houses and even went to the same church on Sundays. We were together all the time that people would often mistake us for twins! I guess if you hang out long enough with one person, you begin to dress, talk and act alike.
College came and my family had to relocate to Baguio. I still remember what Tito Charlie, Mia’s dad, said the day we had to part: "You guys are going to grow apart, college life changes everything. Before you know it, you won’t be in touch and will have completely different lives."
We proved him wrong.
Throughout college, we always made time for our girl talk and special occasions. Mia opened her own art gallery and I finished med school. We had countless coffee dates when I was down and she would spend breaks and holidays up in Baguio.
On one of our coffee afternoons about three and a half years ago, Mia mentioned how Raymond Lauchengco walked into her 1614 gallery (now called "Carlos") and had some of his photographs framed. She was secretly thrilled that a showbiz persona like Raymond would unexpectedly appear. He was very formal and to quote Mia, "very, very nice." That was just the beginning. He started to drop by until his visits came daily with surprise "lunches" for the two of them until they officially became a pair.
Raymond is an actor, singer, photographer and Mia art dealer, writer and painter. It was the perfect setup: Raymond took the photos and Mia wrote the articles. They made a great combination and who knew, that on my wedding day, my best friend would host the reception while Raymond serenaded my husband Bong and I.
Four months later I found myself in Mia’s despedida de soltera, as Tita Minda, Mia’s mom, spoke after dinner. I recall how she prayed for Mia daily since she was a child, and how she constantly prodded her to wait for the right man the Lord had prepared. There’s a time for everything, but more often than not we are too impulsive and want to jump ahead. How I admire the way Mia patiently prayed specifically for her husband-to-be and how she waited, no carefree dating around or having her heart broken by men or short-term relationships.
Last March 25, I found myself in tears as Mia, looking so radiant and beautiful walked passed me to the man that God had intended for her. It was a picturesque wedding ceremony, the sunset sinking into a lake behind the couple as they exchanged vows at the garden of the Sta. Elena Golf & Country Club in Laguna. The wedding culminated, as guests forced themselves to leave, but found it difficult as they hung around talking and enjoying the ambiance of the cool evening.
It was a perfect wedding and a perfect start for Mia and Raymond.
As I watched my best friend that evening, I had never seen her happier and more beautiful, I knew in my heart, they were bonded forever and that this was just the beginning of a lifetime of memories.