Jamie copes with an empty nest

MANILA, Philippines — Like many 50-somethings with young adult children, Jamie Rivera learned to deal with the empty nest syndrome when her only child Reine, 21, left home to study in the States two years ago.

Letting go was hard. But Jamie knew she had no choice. She wants her daughter to have a better future.

So, she went down on her knees and prayed.

“I had to be strong,” she said after the press conference for her tribute album and Hey It’s Me, Jamie!, her 30th anniversary show at Music Museum on Sept. 8.

Jamie felt broken-hearted when she left Reine in the States to return to Manila. Like most moms, she had so many questions. Will her daughter be safe? Will her unica hija be able to adjust? What if she has problems that need urgent solutions and mom is on the other side of the world?

The prayerful Jamie knew all she needed to do was to lift up her daughter to God.

“You have to trust her,” Jamie adds. “You must not be afraid when you entrust everything to the Lord, especially your loved ones. He’s always there.”

So far so good. Reine is doing fine in school, and Jamie thinks her daughter chose the right guy for a boyfriend.

They say you know how well your parents raised you by the kind of person you turn out to be. If you go by the stereotypes of only children born to wealth and privilege, Reine is a far cry from “spoiled brat” onlies.

The girl inherited her mom’s heart for the needy. She also has Jamie’s musical talent. In fact, Reine has managed to come up with a surprise number with Jamie in the show even if she’s studying in the US (except for saying that the audience will see her daughter in a video, the mom wants to keep the details under wraps).

And since the concert date happens to be the Blessed Virgin Mary’s birthday, Jamie the Marian devotee is confident Our Lady will guide her every step of the way. A birthday greeting for Mama Mary on the show is Jamie’s way of paying tribute to the heavenly Celebrator that day.

Speaking of tributes, Jamie also seized the opportunity to thank her ex-boyfriend, songwriter Jimmy Antiporda, for helping her career take off when she was still a new singer.

It was Jimmy who wrote Hey It’s Me, the hit song that catapulted her to fame decades ago. He also wrote Maybe, Say You’ll Never Go, Awit Para Sa ‘yo and Kay Palad Mo (all included in Jamie’s 30th anniversary album under Star Music).

Jamie salutes Jimmy “for helping me achieve my dreams in my formative years in showbiz.”

This was before her pre-Miss Saigon days and before the tag Inspirational Diva made Jamie a staple in milestone religious events like Pope Francis’ visit to Manila, the Fourth World Meeting of Families and others.

Today, Jamie lives up to the Inspirational Diva tag (she seems to have no fitting successor so far) by “praying for fellow Filipinos and singing for them.”

She believes in St. Augustine when he said: “He who sings prays twice.” So she won’t mind singing her inspirational song Heal Our Land to remind everyone about the value of humility, and admitting mistakes, in the face of the country’s problems.

“So many things are happening in our country,” Jamie sighs. “We don’t know that we’re already doing something wrong.”

Once an Inspirational Diva, always an Inspirational Diva. In this day and age when social media magnifies issues, many of us need wisdom from someone who gives hope when we need it most.

That’s why three decades after she hit the music scene, Jamie’s songs resonate even among millennials who give her music a new sound for their generation to pay close attention to.