Your mantra for the week: “Every relationship, including with myself, is a love lesson.”
The pivotal lyrics to what is perhaps the most famous song Linda Creed has written go: “Learning to love yourself is the greatest love of all.” In IAMISM, I have come up with eight ways that will make it easier for you to learn how to love yourself.
1) Love, honor and cherish your own self because you’re the only one who will really have a relationship with yourself for all eternity.
2) Be your own best friend who unconditionally accepts you with all your weaknesses and strengths.
3) Be the kind of person you would like to spend the rest of your life with.
4) Take care of yourself so you can take care of others. Those who abuse themselves and allow others to exploit them end up having to be taken care of by others.
5) Grow in consciousness by letting go of your beliefs that have not made you a happier person, because your purpose on earth is to live a happy, fulfilled life.
6) Recognize your talents even if you have to take aptitude tests to discover them and make sure they are developed.
7) Expand your lovingness through your loving thoughts, feelings, words and actions. Remember that kindness is a child of Love.
8) When you have done all the above, share your life because Love will have given you the strength, the wisdom and the peace “that passeth all understanding.”
Dance, Amelyn
Speaking of the peace that passeth all understanding, a good friend, Amelyn Veloso, my co-host on the TV series “Will Your Fortune, In the Game of Life” and an anchor on CNN Philippines, has moved on to that dimension of our Cosmic Birther, which we call heaven. She is now enfolded in Its loving arms where we all go back to, upon our souls’ decision.
In IAMISM, death is a soul choice, a point in our earthly existence where the lessons to be learned have been fulfilled.
To Iamists, death is simply a moving on to a new journey, for when the earth has taken away our physical limbs, then and only then can we truly… dance!
Dear Amelyn, you have shared your life through your profession that you have excelled in, your singing and your Inner Light that had shone so brightly. Dance, Amelyn… love goes with you wherever you go!
Dinner for Nedy
Bergamo’s Mel Meer recently hosted a post-birthday dinner for his close friend, Rustan’s CEO Nedy Tantoco, at his elegant Dasmariñas Village home, with select guests in attendance: the always stylish Mia Borromeo, Tatler’s Irene Francisco, Nedy’s confidant, the beauteous DJ Lopez, Patrick Jacinto, Martin Cepeda and Nedy’s favorite sister, Marilen.
As always, Mel’s dinners are detail-perfect—from the menu, the table setting, to the music and drinks that keep everyone in high spirits.
In honor of Philippe Lhuillier
Noted lawyer Rene Puno and his chef wife Ann are also known for the dinners they host at home. At Christmastime, Ann’s chicken relleno gets more orders with each passing year.
Last week, their honored guests were Ambassador to Spain Philippe Lhuillier and his lovely wife Edna. Philippe’s new post in Spain came after 11 years in Italy and six years in Portugal.
It was nice to find out that Edna used to be our neighbor on Malate’s Pennsylvania Street, now Leon Guinto, when the country’s population was only 22 million. My nephew Luigi was formerly her daughter Christine’s brother-in-law, and my brother Caloy, who owned the Shell Magallanes gas station, used to hang out with Philippe because Philippe’s mechanic worked in the gas station’s repair shop.
Also, Philippe’s sister-in-law Amparito was our next-door neighbor when she lived in Calle Paris.
Christine’s parfumerie
The most well-known child of the Lhuilliers is Christine, whose parfumerie includes scents like Hombre for men and Jewel for women, as well as linen, room fragrances and scented candles. Christine Lhuillier Parfumerie has 18 kiosks in malls like SM, Robinsons, Century City and Uptown.
Parties for the members of the diplomatic corps are usually more formal, but not this one with the Punos because most of the guests are well-acquainted with each other and have a lot of things in common. For instance, our former ambassador to Russia, Vic Garcia, was a grade school classmate of Philippe in La Salle.
While Ambassador Vic became a career diplomat, Philippe earned a business management degree with an additional degree on gemology.
In 1999, Philippe was appointed by then President Erap Estrada as ambassador to Italy. Today, besides being an exemplary diplomat, he is the chair of the Philippines’ largest pawnshop, Cebuana Lhuillier, with 2,700 branches nationwide.
He holds the distinction of being bestowed the Ordine della Stella della Solidarieta Italiana award from Italy; Order of Rajah Humabon from Cebu City; one of the recipients of the 20 Outstanding Filipinos Abroad; and the Distinguished La Sallian award.
But Philippe remains the unpretentious, amiable gentleman with Old World manners. His very refined and genteel wife Edna makes the perfect complement to his ambassadorial image.
Laughter
That evening, Rene and Ann included their three children on their guest list: Yago, Luis (who had met the Lhuilliers during their family trip to Madrid), and Renee who was with beau Drix Crisologo.
Helen Ong, who has just assumed the presidency of the International Bazaar Foundation Inc., was in a huddle with Connie Guanzon Garcia. Also spotted were Bulgari’s Mario Katigbak, Bob Miller, designer Ito Curata, Paqui and Lilibeth Campos, and Cory Quirino.
The night ended with laughter. I told Philippe that when he puts up the Philippine center in Spain, he must not forget to display the little-known Philippine wild flower called “puki-reyna,” whose scientific name is “Clitoria ternatea Linn.” If I can gather enough before he leaves for Madrid, I will send Philippe a lei of puki-reyna for his enjoyment and as a remembrance of our meeting.
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