What Niña learned from moms of superstars

It’s about raising not just a superstar, it’s about raising a child.

That sums up the lessons Niña Corpuz learned in the course of interviewing the moms of four stars for How To Raise a Superstar published by ABS-CBN Publishing, launched two weeks ago coinciding with a baby shower arranged by brand Aprica. Niña is giving birth to her and husband Vince Rodriguez’s third child (a boy, after daughters Stella, 5, and Emily, 4) on Sept. 15. Vince is the channel head of ABS-CBN Sports+Action. Niña hosts the Kapamilya lifestyle program Good Vibes, airing weekdays, from 1 to 2 p.m., on DZMM Teleradyo and featuring parenting, life hacks, health and wellness.

Niña learned as much from the moms as what she expects readers to learn from her books. The four moms on the book are: Karla Estrada (Daniel Padilla’s), Min Bernardo (Kathryn Bernardo’s), Dionisia Pacquiao (Manny Pacquiao’s) and Pinty Gonzaga (Toni and Alex’s).

“The book is about raising any child, whether a celebrity or ordinary child, with all the love in the world,” concluded Niña. “All of us parents, we all want the best for our children. And a superstar doesn’t necessarily mean a celebrity. It can be a superstar athlete, a superstar nurse, a superstar teacher — whatever they want to be when they grow up, superstars in their fields. That’s the kind of superstar that I’m talking about in my book.” 

The moms are also inspiring because sometimes they find themselves in the limelight, they also get bad press.

“But you know, even if they get all these negative feedback or press, the focus is the children,” noted Niña. “So no matter what people say about them, they know what’s best for their children, and that’s true. They are the parent.”

Niña and Vince themselves are raising superstars.

“I just want my kids to have fun.”

Stella and Emily took after their physically active parents.

They like going outdoors, and they have gone hiking and trekking. She recalls, “Emily, her first trek when she was two years old but, of course, she took the easy parts. They went to the waterfalls. My husband likes the outdoors, me also because I grew up in the province, Ilocos Norte. We grew up running in the fields, in the beaches, swimming, playing tennis, biking. My kids, they’re a mix. They’re maarte, but also sporty. Hahaha!!! They’re swimmers. They started swimming at two years old, so now they can swim on their own.”

And, yes, here’s what Niña learned from the superstars’ moms:

• Mommy Karla. She has a very strong personality. If you see, she’s the opposite of Daniel Padilla. The other one is very outspoken, Daniel just keeps to himself. But they were able to balance that out for some reason because Karla is something else. She’s also a supermom. She’s also a single mom. She knew her son was going to be a star. It’s a gift, I guess. She has other kids, but why Daniel, who was the most reluctant of them all? But she was able to pinpoint that from the very beginning. The moment he was born, she knew she had a star. Mother’s instinct. She really is the queen mother.

• Mommy Min. She’s very hands-on. They’re from Cabanatuan. Imagine going back and forth, Cabanatuan to Manila just so Kath can audition. It’s sacrifice. She gave up her job. She was an entrepreneur. So, it’s also about being selfless, and to follow her daughter’s dream because her daughter really wanted to be in showbiz. The whole family supported Kathryn. That’s where you see how important family is to a person’s dreams. All her children are successful, the other one’s a doctor, the other one owns a salon, the other one is going to study abroad. They support each other. There’s no jealousy.

• Mommy Dionisia.  I learned how much a parent can sacrifice for her children. One thing with Mommy Dionisia that we can all learn from is that poverty is not a hindrance to success. It’s not an excuse. Maybe a hindrance, it’s harder for you, but it’s not an excuse not to succeed in life, no matter how poor you are.

• Mommy Pinty. They are very religious. The sisters grew up reading the Bible. From her I learned how to bring your kids closer to God, because if you do, hopefully nothing goes wrong. They’ll listen to you, they’ll respect you. It’s no joke having parents that are so strict, usually kids like that rebel. But if you look at Toni and Alex, they understood why their parents did what they did. They’re the ideal kids.

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