Lessons Charo learns from MMK

DAVAO CITY, Philippines – The whole team behind the ABS-CBN drama anthology Maalaala Mo Kaya (MMK), led by host and the Kapamilya network’s chief content officer Charo Santos-Concio, flew into this city last Saturday for a special MMK Letter Senders’ Reunion as part of the show’s silver anniversary celebration. The event gathered the 41 letter senders that came from Davao, Pagadian City, General Santos, Cagayan de Oro and other parts of Mindanao.

The show researchers went out of their way to locate the letter senders and personally invite them to the reunion. Letter senders like Albert Colmo, Patma Albana, Rose, Milagros Rubio, Rosita Ragon, Ofelia Mangubat, Basilisa Morales, Junaraida Mulavallespin, Ellah Pancho, and friends Leslie, Apple and Lorie were among those who came to meet Charo once again. All of them continue to face life with courage and strong faith in the Lord.

Charo, in a chat with select members of the entertainment press here and from Manila, shared that it’s a humbling experience to be part of each and every letter sender’s life and at the same time very inspiring for them to go on with the show knowing that MMK continues to uplift the spirits of many Kapamilya in and out of the country through its various stories of hope, redemption, forgiveness and love.

In fact, the mild-mannered host just came from Madrid where she felt the overwhelming trust of our kababayan in the show. “I felt happy during my first Kwentuhang Kapamilya Sa Madrid because with just a simple, ‘Kumusta kayo?’ all of them wanted to tell their life stories and I felt they were very willing to open up to me; na pwede akong mahingahan ng hinaing at makinig sa kanilang mga kwento. It was really heartening.”

Charo never denied that MMK has taught her many lessons in life. “When I started reading letters, self-centeredness vanished. You’ll get to realize that there’s a bigger world out there and then it develops your sense of empathy and compassion for other people.

“You will become more understanding of what life is all about so when you look at other people, there will be no more judgment. You just appreciate them given the context and circumstance of their lives. You just really show appreciation and empathy for their struggle. ‘Yan ang dinala (epekto) ng MMK sa akin.” 

There were many stories, too, that touched her heart. Charo recalled how her heart bled over the story of a mom who visibly showed unconditional love for her three mentally-challenged children. Another episode, titled Sinturon, all the more made her believe that true love knows no boundaries.

Charo also related how she cried buckets in the Caveman episode which was about a father who brought his children to live inside the cave after their house was destroyed by a typhoon. Zanjoe Marudo portrayed the role of the father in the said episode.

“In my 25 years in MMK, I’ve never turned down any story because all their (senders) stories are important to me. There are similar stories and you just have to choose the best. There is no censorship in subject matter because we tackle everything, even a rare disease. Every story is inspiring.”

Asked what inspires her to live a happy and contented life, Charo said it always depends on a person’s perspective about life. In her case, she chooses to see the glass half-full rather than half-empty. “I choose to see what’s positive. We are not in control of a lot of things and since the only thing I can be in control of is myself, I made a choice to see what’s positive even if there are struggles. I choose to see the lessons rather than the pain. You honor the pain, yes, the anxieties but at the end of the day, I still choose to see what’s positive at yun siguro ang nagpapa-excite sa akin.

“It keeps me young, I continue to learn if there is something new to experience. I do not fear change. Recently, when I went to Boracay sabi ko I’ve never done parasailing in my life so when my stepdaughter asked me if I wanted to try it sabi ko why not so I went parasailing for the first time. At 60 (years old), wow parang di ba liberation? It’s good to know that at my age I was able to conquer my fears parang kasi pag bata ka mas takot ka kasi you put pressure on yourself but perhaps, when you reach this age, you never know kasi you just might drop dead tomorrow so I just enjoy the moment.”

Does she also consider sharing her life story to MMK?

“No. I never considered doing my life story in MMK because the show is not about me. It’s about other people’s stories so let it be that way,” Charo said.

(MMK aired its pilot episode in 1991. Its reunion event began last year in Visayas gathering letter senders from Bacolod, Cebu and Iloilo. The celebrities present in the Davao reunion were Robin Padilla and Angeline Quinto who starred in Kuweba and Makeup episodes, respectively.)