Unsolicited advice to KC Concepcion & Piolo Pascual

Ah me! Love can not be cured by herbs.  — Ovid

Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to the problem of human existence. — Eric Fromm

Love must be as much a light, as it is a flame.  — Henry David Thoreau

Next to the unfinished bitter political and legal battles between President Noynoy C. Aquino and his former Ateneo economics professor ex-President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, the talk of the town (and perhaps most of the nation) is the bitter, high-profile and surprising telenovela twists to the breakup of telegenic showbiz couple KC Concepcion and Piolo Pascual.

I have met and talked to both KC Concepcion and Piolo Pascual personally. Both of them impressed me as among the most sensible and good-natured stars in Philippine entertainment. In fact, the smart and wholesome Piolo even shared that he reads the Bible daily and goes to church not only on Sundays but also for weekly fellowship.

Just weeks ago, Century Tuna executives told me that the sexy tandem of KC and Piolo was a success for their advertising blitz, while the Angel Locsin and Phil Younghusband tandem actually only had Angel as the stronger celebrity endorser.

Boy Abunda once told me that turning down a then lanky college student Piolo Pascual who approached him in a Makati disco many years ago to apply to be his talent “was one of the biggest mistakes of my career as talent manager.”

New York Times correspondent Carlos “Caloy” Conde responded via Twitter to my question abut the breakup: “KC-Piolo breakup did to Filipinos what Arroyo’s arrest did not: force them to look into their inner selves.”

UP-educated painter Teta Limcangco sent me this message on Twitter: “With KC and Piolo, the Filipinos’ imagination worked, but with Arroyo, Filipinos made the Arroyos' imagination work… joke!”

South China Morning Post writer Raissa Robles asked on Twitter: “Just curious. How many ‘girlfriends’ has actor Piolo Pascual had? I watched him in Milan with Claudine Barretto. He seemed macho enough.”

Intriguing & Even Controversial Questions

Recently at a lunch with award-winning Studio 23 Iba Balita newscaster Anthony “Tunying” Taberna, who is known for expressing opinions at the end of his TV news reports, he said: “I’m saddened by the breakup of KC and Piolo. Mabait na bata si KC (KC is a good kid)….”

When I asked his reactions to not a few of my Twitter followers questioning the gender orientation of Piolo after this breakup and KC’s tearful Nov. 27 TV interview on The Buzz with STAR columnist Boy Abunda, Taberna replied: “Yes, about that issue, I think Piolo should come out to explain his side and what is the truth.”

Masuki restaurant chain entrepreneur Willen Ma, grandniece of the legendary Ma Mon Luk, told this writer: “Unlike others who expressed sadness for KC, I am actually happy for her. Why? Because KC is so young, beautiful and smart, she can now have more opportunities to meet and get to know other guys. She has visited our main resto branch on Benavidez Street in Binondo to interview for her former TV show, and I am impressed with KC. I believe this breakup will open up a new and better chapter of her life.”

When I got the message from ABS-CBN 2 newscaster Julius Babao asking whether actress and Hayden Kho’s ex-girlfriend Maricar Reyes is the “M” rumored to be the third-party cause of the KC-Piolo breakup, I tweeted this question and got so many Twitter reactions saying it was impossible. Some even explained the impossibility by tweeting that KC isn’t a lesbian.

My opinion? I think the Maricar Reyes rumor is part of damage control PR and also perhaps advance promotions for ABS-CBN’s upcoming telenovela series, Padre de Pamilya, starring coincidentally Piolo and Maricar.

Top pundit Ronald Constantino said: “Heard that in Boy Abunda’s interview on ABS-CBN’s The Buzz, he asked a teary-eyed KC about the gay rumors, but that portion was edited out. Understandable as Piolo and KC are under one Kapamilya network, talents of Star Magic.”

My unsolicited advice for the heartbroken KC and Piolo:

Both of you are still young (especially the 26-year-old KC) and can have greater futures ahead without letting problems with this failed romance overwhelm or consume your lives. What others think or say are ultimately not as important as loving yourself first.

It’s normal to suffer pain, but do not dwell on it too much after expressing your anger and grief. Quickly put your pain behind you and psychologically, emotionally make a real clean break with the past.

Whether in love, in our profession, business or any other human endeavor, every failure is only a temporary setback. Go out and live a normal life. Get busy. Socialize with friends. Pray. Exercise regularly. Never lose hope. Never fear to trust or love others again. It is important to gain lessons, maturity and strength from this and from every crisis in life.

Praying and strong faith are also very important in overcoming a crisis. I was recently reminded of this by a showbiz star almost as young, equally smart, beautiful and talented as KC and who recently survived her own messy and problematic romance.

When I asked how she handled her crisis well, the 21-year-old GMA 7 actress Rhian Ramos replied: “I’m not so sure if you’re Christian, but this is where I get my strength: ‘Greater is He who is in me than he who is in the world.’” (1 John 4:4)

Last but not the least, I suggest that you look for long-term love and commitment not in Hollywood or fairy-tale situations based mainly on irrational emotions, lust or illusion, but follow what Lea Salonga once told me is the ideal balance of one’s emotions and one’s head. Also, do take time to seek out wise advice from your more mature friends, especially from your parents or elders.

* * *

Thanks for all your letters! E-mail willsoonflourish@gmail.comor follow WilsonLeeFlores on Twitter.com, also Facebook.