The healing power of love
Since he will be on official trip to China this weekend, Public Works Sec. Mark Villar surprised his wife, DIWA Party List Rep. Emmeline “Em” Aglipay-Villar with a Mother’s Day big lunch at Annabel’s restaurant last Wednesday graced by media guys and what the couple called The Lupus Warriors composed of lupus patients like Em.
“We will celebrate Mother’s Day as soon as I come back,” said Mark. “It will be a big family day.”
According to a medical book, lupus is an autoimmune disease that causes swelling (inflammation) and a wide variety of symptoms. It affects each individually uniquely. Some people have only a few mild symptoms and others have many, more severe symptoms, among them: Fatigue, recurrent low-grade fever, rashes, itchy lesions in some areas of the body, discoloration in the fingers and toes, chest pains and shortness of breath, swollen painful joints, gastro intestinal problems, etc.
“I have all those,” Em again reminded those present. “Lupus can be hard to diagnose because it hides behind various symptoms. Once you have it, you have it for life. All you can do is take medications to manage it.”
As Funfare previously reported, Em was single when she was in her early 20s when diagnosed with lupus. She underwent chemotherapy. “Luckily,” said Em, “I didn’t have to undergo dialysis.”
To hide the rashes on her face, she had to wear thick makeup. She said that she even hesitated to get married because she was worried that she couldn‘t have a child.
Mark was undaunted, ignoring lupus in his effort to win the affection of Em who is the daughter of Ret. Gen. Edgardo Aglipay and the first cousin of Rico Yan (whose dad Roby is the brother of Emmeline’s mom Mawie). The couple has a daughter, Emma Therese, who will be two years old on Sept. 21.
Mark confirmed that Em is not completely cured.
“Symptoms still flare up,” he said. “They keep coming back, so I tell her to relax, rest muna, because she is not supposed to go out in the sun, bawal mainitan at
bawal maarawan. She should avoid stress but then she cannot be stopped because of her many projects.”
Besides medicine, what helps Em fight lupus is prayer.
“And the power of love,” smiled Mark who couldn’t be stopped from courting Em even if, according to Em, “I tried to hide my rashes and I was wearing a wig to hide the baldness.” Added Mark, “We pray very hard for her to be totally healed.”
A movie writer commented that that the couple’s love story is so beautiful that it should be dramatized (paging Charo Santos-Concio of Maalaala Mo Kaya? and Mel Tiangco of Magpakailanman).
“Our story is only starting,” said Mark. “We still have a long way to go.” Other mothers’ story
Among those present at the Villars’ party were Ynez Veneracion and Patricia Javier.
Ynez caught the movie writers’ attention because of her fabulous fitness and her positive aura, hardly looking like she’s a mother of a six-yearold daughter by a powerful politician from Mindanao.
“We have long been separated but he’s a good provider,” revealed Ynez. “We are in contact and he visits us every now and then.”
Being a single mom is hard but Ynez manages.
“Even if he’s not with us,” said Ynez, “he’s a big help. He makes my mothering easy.”
Patricia is happy that his and husband Rob Walcher III’s family (with two children) is intact.
“My time is focused on our children,” said Patricia who has successfully resettled her family back home. “Rob and I raise our kids more the Filipino way. We teach them to be God-fearing and to respect not just elders but everybody, and to always remember to say po or opo.”
A chiropractor, Rob has his own clinic on Scout Madrinan St., Quezon City (just across from Il Terrazo). (E-mail reactions at entphilstar@yahoo.com.)