"Oh Jo, caluguran daca...caluguran sobra-sobra", so goes a Kapampangan hit song just a few years back. But oh, the things Kapampangans will do for love. He will go to great lengths to win the love of his life, including getting parental approval, overcoming differences like race, age and social status, hurdling legal impediments and other adversities. The love stories of these Kapampangan couples--some fascinating, others amusing, all real-life-- illustrate how love can indeed, move mountains.
*****
1. FRAY GUILLERMO
MASNOU & PATRICIA MERCADO: A Dangerous Liaison
The accomplished Fray Guillermo Masnou (b.6 Dec.
1827)/d.16 May 1895) , the son of Pedro Masnou and Isabel Gomez, was a graduate of the Real Colegio Seminario de
Villadolid. Three years after professing his vows, he sailed to the the
Philippines in 1852, along with 34 other
Augustinians. His first assignment was in Sto. Tomas, Pampanga ,
followed by Angeles where he served the
longest (1855-1877). There, he worked to renovate the church, build the
convent, several bridges, the town cemetery and a school building. While on his
first year in Pampanga, Fr. Masnou met
Patricia Mercado of Sto. Tomas (b. ca. 1828/d.4 Apr. 1900), a single mother of 3 children. The two started an affair, which resulted in at least 6 children.
In an effort to spare Patricia and his family from
possible disgrace, Fr. Masnou devised a way to make it appear that their
children were legitimate. He had their names recorded in the Angeles parish
books, identifying Patricia Mercado as the mother and a certain Nicolas Gomez as
the father. Gomez was supposedly a Spaniard who went to the Philippines to
marry the Pampanga native. Records also show he died in 1861—6 years before his
youngest daughter was born and more than 38 years before his “widow” died. All these entries in the canonical
books were signed by Fr. Masnou.
It has now come to
light that this Nicolas Gomez was a fictitious character that Fr. Masnou
created, to give legitimacy and respectability to his children and his
mistress. It was a final act of love that he did, before he returned to Spain in 1877. His stay
would be brief, as a year later, he was back in Pampanga. Could it be that he
couldn’t stand being away from his true love?
As a footnote to this 'dangerous liaison', the couple’s
firstborn, Esteban Gomez married Josefa Pamintuan. Daughter Teresa would grow
up to be the wife of Juan De Dios Nepomuceno, and the two would start a clan
that would shape the progress of Angeles.
2. ROMAN R. SANTOS
& JULIANA P. ANDRES: The Comeback Story of a Penniless Orphan and His
Headstrong Bride.
The riches-to-rags-to-riches story of Roman Rodriguez
Santos (b. 9 Aug. 1880/d.19 Jul. 1959) began in Apalit, as the son of a well-to-do
family whose fortunes from their sugarlands were all wiped out by a series of
calamities—typhoons, earthquakes and sicknesses. To make things worse, his
father Hilarion died of beri-beri, leaving a young wife to fend for their 4
children. The final blow to Roman, the only boy in the family, was the death of
his mother when he was but 11.
The orphan came to live with a well-off cousin, Florencia Rodriguez Sioco, married to
Spanish mestizo, Joaquin Gonzalez. They took care of Roman, sent him to Letran, and the boy, in turn, ran errands for the family. Roman went home to Apalit once a month.
In one of his visits home, Roman stopped to consult a manghuhula (fortune
teller)—who prophesied that he would become wealthy beyond his wildest dreams.
On weekends, Roman would explore Manila, walking as far
away as Navotas. Here, he would meet Juliana Andres (b. 1877/d.2 Mar.1946), who turned out
to be a second cousin—both their paternal grandmothers, Maria and Leogarda
Ochoa, were sisters. Unlike the deprived Roman, Juliana was the daughter of
town principalia, known for their vast tracts of lands and fishponds. Determined to pursue her, Roman left the
Gonzalez household to seek a new life in Navotas. At the onset, Juliana’s
father disapproved of Roman because of his lowly station in life. He had
earlier disowned his own son because he rejected his choice of wife. But the headstrong
Juliana prevailed when she eloped with Roman in 1899.
On the day he ran away with Juliana, Roman had 70 pesos
in his pocket, a calesa and a horse. In due time, he acquired a boat, and
engaged in trading molasses from Pampanga. Through long years of hard work, the
once penniless orphan expanded his business, acquired haciendas from the Zobels,
established his own fishing corporations, invested in a coconut business, founded the Rizal Surety and Insurance Co., Empire
Insurance Co., and at age 72, the Prudential Bank and Trust Co. By the time he
died in 1959, he was a pillar of Philippine economy, with an estate conservatively
valued at close to 4 million pesos. The prediction of the Apalit fortune teller
Roman met many years before had come true.
3. JOSE GUTIERREZ DAVID & CONCEPCION ROQUE: All
Is Fair In Young Love
The future Supreme Court justice, Jose Gutierrez David of
Bacolor (b. 29 Jan. 1891/d. 24 Mar. 1977) first met the love of his life,
Concepcion Roque (b. 8 Dec. 1891/13 Jul. 1971) of San Fernando, in 1905, when the 15 year old was chosen to
deliver a speech in front of visiting Secretary of War, William Howard Taft and
Miss Alice Roosevelt. Concepcion or “Chong”
was also with a group of girls that welcomed the distinguished visitors. Only after the chinita beauty was promoted to
intermediate level that the two met formally. The young Jose lost no time in
writing love letters to Chong that were discreetly inserted in her books by
Jose’s cousin. In February 1906, Chong accepted Jose’s offer of love, over rich
suitors from Guagua, Tarlac and a businessman from San Fernando.
In one of their dates, he overheard Chong talking to her
chaperone friend, Maria Guiao, about a lady’s handbag that she liked for sale at
a local shop. Jose was determined to save enough money so he could buy the
desired bag for Chong by Christmas. Every so often, he would go to the Bombay
Bazaar to check if the bag was still there. In four months, he managed to save
15 pesos, the exact amount that he needed to buy the bag. Jose presented the
gift on her birthday, which thrilled Chong and further endeared him to her. But
the most precious gift was a poem dedicated to her entitled “Tuqui Ca Baculud”
(Come to Bacolor), which saw print in the March 1908 of the daily, “Ing
Bandila”.
The first time Chong was displeased with Jose was when he
quit school in 1907 after a misunderstanding with his teacher. It was she who
convinced him to return to high school, which he finished, after an absence of
2 years. The second time was when the two went out to see a movie. While
Chong’s chaperone was walking ahead of them, Jose stole a kiss, in fact, two
kisses—which alarmed the young Chong.
Influenced by the prevailing notion that a girl was no
longer pure once she had been kissed, Chong conceived the idea that they should
marry secretly, but would not live together. On 6 Jan. 1912, the couple were
secretly married in Minalin by Jose’s judge-uncle, Macario Julao. In no time,
the news leaked out, and Chong would have been punished by her outraged father
had her mother not intervened. The couple only lived together after Jose
graduated from high school in March 1912.
Jose topped his
law class at the Escuela de Derecho in
1915, became a trial lawyer and then joined the judicial court system as Auxiliary Justice of the Peace from
1918-20. He would rise to become an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court in
1959, under Pres. Carlos P. Garcia. Retired in 1961 in San Juan, he outlived his wife for 4 years. It is but
fitting that his last poem, “Misan Pa” (Once More) was dedicated to his beloved
Chong.
4. JUAN D. NEPOMUCENO & TERESA GOMEZ: Joined By the Gods
of Fortune.
The story of Angeles and its progress is inextricably
linked to the remarkable partnership of a Juan de Dios Nepomuceno ((b. 8 March
1892/d.22 Apr. 1973 ) and Clara Teresa
Teodora Gomez (b. 12 Aug. 1893/d. 17 Apr. 1970) whose
larger-than-life businesses shaped the course of the town’s economy while
serving God and their beloved community. The 2 had contrasting backgrounds--Juan
was an academic achiever, a summa cum laude law graduate of UST. Unlike her Jesuit-educated
husband, Teresa or Nena never went beyond grade school, but developed uncanny
business savvy, while dabbling in healing and folk naturopathy.
Family lore has it that Juan actually acted as a
go-between for a friend who wanted to woo Teresa. He would pay regular visits
to Nena but was too timid to declare his intentions, preferring instead to
“court through the eyes” (maglolo ya qng mata). It took Nena’s grandmother,
Severina Pamintuan to help the reserved Juan to open up, by asking him
blatantly what his feelings for Nena were. In the end, due to this prodding,
Juan and Teresa went ahead with their wedding on 19 March 1919 after months of suffering
from tuberculosis. In fact, so emaciated were they that they opted to have
their wedding picture taken 6 months after the wedding, after they have
recovered sufficiently.
The couple set up house in their Bale Maragul, along
Santo Rosario, just across the church. Initially, Juan practiced law but the
business minded Teresa sought other means of livelihood. Together, they
single-handedly opened the 1st electric plant (1921) and the crystal ice plant
of the region. They ventured into softdrinks production, and established the
country’s 1st Catholic school run by laypersons—now known as Holy Angel
University. In the 60s, they developed the city’s premiere subdivision that
reconfigured the layout and social strata of Angeles. Around this, a new
commercial business district was laid out by the couple and their children,
whose very name today—“Nepo”—bears their enduring influence and legacy which
continues to reverberate in the city today.
Juan and Teresa raised 10 children in all, each one
raised in good old Kapampangan family values, and each one an achiever in their
own right. It is no wonder that in 1969, the Nepomucenos were awarded the Rizal
Pro-Patria Award for Family Solidarity by then Pres. Ferdinand Marcos at rites
in Malacanang.
Throughout their lives, Juan and Nena shared their
triumphs not only with their family, but also with the community through their
philanthropic works, socio-civic-political-activities and religious advocacies. The couple lived their life simply, quietly and kindly till the end of their
days, remaining steadfast in service and prayer.
5. DR. WENCESLAO
VITUG & JUANITA ARRASTIA: When A Royalty Marries A Commoner.
In 1926, few were surprised at the election of Juanita Salgado
Arrastia (b. 8 Mar. 1902/d. 8 September 1994.) as Queen of the Pampanga Carnival.
Daughter of the richest hacendero of Lubao, the Spanish-Kapampangan comes from
a family noted for the legendary beauty of their women, a group that that would
come to include actress Letty Alonso, international socialite Isabel Arrastia
Preysler and Steve McQueen’s wife, Neile Adams. But the Colegio de Sta. Rosa
student had a more practical reason for her triumph- "I won because my
father had the biggest hacienda in Lubao”, she said, “ It wasn't about
beauty."
It was no wonder that, a few months after being named
Miss Pampanga, Juanita did the unthinkable—she married Dr. Wenceslao Beltran
Vitug (b. 28 Sep 1892/7 January 1986), considered a “commoner” having come from
Concepcion, a barrio of Arrastia sharecroppers. Moreover, “Beses” was dark and
plain, not to mention 10 years her senior. But he overcame his lowly beginnings
by topping his class at the Pampanga High School, earned a medical degree from
the University of the Philippines, practiced at the Philippine General Hospital
and taught Medicine at the University of Santo Tomas. His whirlwind romance
with Juanita served to accelerate further his rise to social prominence.
Their love affair began when she and her sister, Carmen,
accompanied their diabetic mother to the PGH for consultation with the accomplished
doctor- internist. His diagnosis impressed Juanita’s mother, Doña Francisca, who did her best to push her
daughter to become friends with "Beses". She did not need much prodding, as Juanita had
also fallen in love with the brilliant doctor.
The marriage of Juanita to a ‘commoner’ who made good was
big news in Lubao. The Vitugs quickly settled in the town and became
hacenderos
themselves. Eventually, they would run two households—one in Manila, the other
in Lubao, balancing work with raising 5 children. The
hacienda that was left to their management
prospered and grew, and in turn, their tenants rewarded them with their
loyalty. In the truest sense of the perfect royalty, Juanita Arrastia wore her
crown on her heart, not on her head.
6. DIOSDADO P. MACAPAGAL & PURITA DELA ROSA: Devotion Until Death
The poor boy from Lubao and the future president,
Diosdado P. Macapagal ( b. 28 Sep. 1910/d. 21 Apr. 1997 and Purita dela Rosa (b. 1916/d.1943) were
neighbors in San Nicolas, a sleepy barrio of Lubao, Pampanga. Purita had an admirer, who happened to be a friend of Dadong. Dadong used to accompany this friend in his regular visits to the dela Rosa home, so Purita and Dadong became acquaintances as well. Also, both were hometown zarzuela stars who, on several
occasions, had performed alongside each other. Little did Dadong know that it
was him that Purita was attracted to, finding him gentle, good-looking and
promising.
It took 10 years before their courtship culminated in
their wedding on 4 July 1938. On that special day, Dadong recalls his "sublime
feeling of oneness with my wife as God meant it to be and as we celebrated our
wedding together, there was another celebration in the city—American
Independence Day."
In a rented house in Sta. Ana, the newlyweds made their
home. Dadong worked as an assistant attorney while Purita played her role as a
doting wife, often cooking sinigang for her new husband. Their union was
blessed with two children, Cielo and Arturo.
Purita, however, had always been plagued by poor health
all her life. After her second child was born, she fell ill, and her sickness
was aggravated due to the lack of medical attention in wartime Philippines. Dadong
tended to Purita, staying by her bedside, as a dutiful caregiver. She lingered for 3 years, and died in
Dadong’s arms, a tragic scene straight from a movie. Purita was only 27, a
president’s wife who never became a First Lady, but who definitely was first in
Diosdado’s heart, in the short years they were together,
7. VIRGILIO RODRIGUEZ
& CARMELING DEL ROSARIO: Giving Up the Crown for the Man She Loves
One of the most striking beauties ever to emerge from the
legendary Manila Carnivals of the peacetime years was Carmen del Rosario (b.2
Jul. 1916/d. 17 Apr. 2012), Miss Mindanao 1935. Though not Pampanga-born, her marriage to the scion of San Fernando’s
most prominent family and her long-time residence in the capital certainly
qualifies her to be claimed as one of Pampanga’s own. She was one of 9 children
to Jose del Rosario and Carmelita de Leon of Manila . Her grandfather, Anacleto
Sales del Rosario was the country’s leading chemist during the Spanish times
and was an acquaintance of Jose P. Rizal
As a standout campus beauty of Centro Escolar de Señoritas,
Carmeling was wooed and pursued by a
number of swains. One of them was the dashing Virgilio H. Rodriguez, the eldest
son of the affluent sugar planter and businesswoman Doña Victoria Hizon Rodriguez,
widow of the late Godofredo Rodriguez of San Fernando.
The couple had planned to get married after college, but
the 1935 Manila Carnival intervened. A La Vanguardia editor and a friend of Carmeling’s father,
had been badgering the latter to allow her 19 year old daughter to run for Miss
Philippines under his paper’s sponsorship. Thinking that her chances of winning were
slim, Carmeling’s father persuaded his reluctant daughter to run. They agreed
however, that should she win, she would immediately relinquish her title and go
back to her studies.
As luck would have it, Carmeling garnered enough votes to
place 4th—and win the Miss Mindanao title behind winner Conchita
Sunico. But for her family, there was no real cause for rejoicing for it meant
putting on hold all her plans for one full year. Her victory had already been
reported in newspapers along with Catalina Zabala (Miss Luzon) and Julieta Abad
(Miss Visayas) when she announced that
she was giving up her title. Her
decision ruffled quite a few of the feathers of carnival officials and
participants who now believed her to be a nuisance candidate. Celia Araullo,
who placed fifth, replaced her.
Carmeling not only went back to school, but the very next
year, on 26 June 1935, she married her beau Virgilio, in spectacular rites at the Sto. Domingo
Church. The couple settled in San Fernando, where Carmeling quickly learned to
speak in Kapampangan. They had 5 children: Victoria, Godofredo, Gorgonia, Ana
Marie and Jo Anne. She settled in San Lorenzo Village, Makati with a daughter
until her death at age 96.
8. BENIGNO AQUINO JR. & CORAZON COJUANGCO: A Car Accident Made Them Do It.
The future hero, Benigno Aquino Jr, (b.27 Nov. 1932/d. 21
Aug.1983) and first female president of
the Philippines, Corazon Cojuangco (b.25 Jan. 1933/d.1 Aug. 2009) first met when they both were 9 years
old. The two families were actually
related to each other—Ninoy’s half-brother, Servillano Jr., was married to
Cory’s cousin, Trinidad Cojuangco. Cory’s father, Jose Sr., was godfather of
Lupita, Ninoy’s sister.
As Ninoy came of age, he was linked to several
ladies—including Imelda Romualdez—who was introduced to him by Danieling
Romualdez (Imelda’s cousin) whose wife
was Ninoy’s aunt, Paz Gueco of Magalang. Ninoy was often asked by her matchmaker
aunt to escort Imelda home, after her work. Imelda once claimed that Ninoy
courted her, and Ninoy’s sisters (except Lupita) favored her. But their
relationship came to a sudden halt when Ninoy met Cory during one of her
vacations from the U.S. where she was studying. Their romance became more
definite when she returned for good to the Philippines..
In one of their early dates, Ninoy, Cory and sister
Josephine, a chaperone, met an accident when their Buick was hit by a jeep.
While the 2 sisters were confined at a hospital, Ninoy told Cory that the accident was meant
for them to get married. To this, Cory gave feeble resistance, after insisting
that the accident was planned by Ninoy on purpose. Even Cory’s parents approved
of the match and on 11 October 1954 , Ninoy and Cory, both 21, got married and
this consolidate the Aquino-Cojuangco family wealth and power, leaving behind
legacy of bloodless people power revolution of EDSA.
9. SILVESTRE LANSANGAN & ERLINDA BAUTISTA: Romeo and Juliet of
Mabalacat.
The story of star-crossed lovers Erlinda Castro Bautista
(b. 14 June 1936/d. 16 Sep. 2010) and Silvestre Malit Lansangan (b.12
Nov.1932) is the stuff TV telenovelas
are made of. In fact, their story was featured as an episode in the “Miss D” drama
series on Channel 7, aired on 12 August 1998. Linda and Beting first met in May
1949, during a town santacruzan where Linda was the Reyna Elena. He was quickly
smitten by the young queen and she too, succumbed to her feelings. So, on 3 Sep
1950, 14 year-old Linda went to hear mass and never came back home,
having eloped with 18 year-old Beting.
Linda’s mother, Apung Coring, was against Bet, because
her daughter was too young to get married. But lovestruck Erlinda would not come home. The disappointed
parents took a drastic measure--they decided to send her to jail for
disobedience. There, the police chief, an uncle, took her under his custody but
gave her special treatment. Undeterred, Beting secretly saw his beloved Linda
by climbing the back wall and peering through the cell’s small window--every
day for 21 days—the length of time Linda was incarcerated. Their love story
made them popular in Mabalacat, so much so that the people made this line for
Linda: "Tadtaran daku man mapinu, ing mitalamsik a daya kang Bet ya pa
murin." (Even I were finely chopped, my blood that spatters will still be
for Bet).
Eventually, Linda’s parents sent her off to Marikina
where her paternal relatives resided. There, she enrolled at the Cubao
Elementary School. Beting sought her out and found her in Cubao after a month’s
relentless search. For the second time, the two decided to elope again. But, they were caught in time by Linda’s
grandfather—and ex-Katipunero-- who saw her stuffing her bag with clothes. The
couple were already in a bus when the old man came running with a bolo, demanding
that they alight from the vehicle. Their thwarted plan was reported to her
parents. But this time, realizing the depth and sincerity of their love,
Linda’s parents gave their blessings to the couple. Linda and Beting were
married in San Juan Church and were blessed with 4 children: Joel, Rod, Elvis
and Lily, all married with children, all residing in the
United States.
BONUS! A Different Love..
THE LOVE OF LOLO
PULONG/PULONIA
Never has the voice of the LGBT community been heard much
louder than now---what with current issues in the news lately—from same-sex
marriage to the victories of Filipino gays and transgenders in unexpected
fields like sports and politics. Ours have always been an accepting
society—since the ancient time of gender-bending babaylans who were empowered
to heal and speak with divinities. The story of Crispulo “Pulong” Luna (b. 10
Jun 1903/d.May 1970) is another proof that indeed, love knows no gender.
His case was first written about by the award-winning
writer, J. Neil Garcia in his book, “Performing the Self: Occasional
Prose”. In fact, “Pulong” made it to the
cover of his acclaimed book. Born to parents Pedro Luna and Candelaria Trinidad
of Sasmuan, Pampanga, he grew up in
Orani, Bataan where his father made a living in fishing, then moved to Paco,
Manila.
There, the young Pulong discovered Victoria Studios where
he delighted in posing for the cameras---all made up with rouge and lipstick, and
dressed in female outfits—from an exquisite baro’t saya to exotic Japanese
geisha robes. His permissive family didn’t mind his feminine behavior and his
cross-dressing fetish, and when asked why he didn’t get married, he replied,
“Por Dios, babae ako!”.
Pulong then fell in love with Juan, a young carpenter and
many years his junior, and the two would live together as partners. Pulong’s
immediate family and sisters did not object to this arrangement, and their
relationship could have gone on had it not been for a tragic accident. Juan
died from his injuries he sustained from a fall while doing construction work.
Pulong, alone once more, moved in with his sisters after his partner’s death,
and found work as a store help and a laundry worker.
In his golden years, Lolo Pulong kept company with gay
beauticians in his neighborhood, “Lolo Pulonia” as they called him, passed away
in May 1970.
PICTURES & SOURCES:
FRAY GUILLERMO
MASNOU & PATRICIA MERCADO: Nepomuceno, Carmelo M.D. The Gomez family of
Angeles Pampanga and the Mercado relatives, privately printed, 2002.
DON ROMAN R. SANTOS
& DÑA. JULIANA P. ANDRES: Santos, Vicente Roman,, Alejandro, Reynaldo G.,
TAHANAN, A House Reborn, Duende Publishing. © 2003. pp. 24-49.
JOSE GUTIERREZ
DAVID & CONCEPCION ROQUE: My Story, unpublished manuscript of Jose
Gutierrez David., picture courtesy of Del Rosario Family
DON JUAN D.
NEPOMUCENO & DNA.TERESA GOMEZ Mendoza, Erlita. A Cofradia of Two: Oral History
on the Family Life and Lay Religiosity of Juan D. Nepomuceno and Teresa G. Nepomuceno
of Angeles, Pampanga. Center for Kapampangan Studies, Holy Angel University,
Angeles City. 2004.
DR. WENCESLAO VITUG
& JUANITA ARRASTIA. Castro, Alex R. Aro, Katimyas Da!: A Memory Album of
Titled Kapampangan Beauties 1908-2010, Center for Kapampangan Studies, Holy
Angel University, Angeles City, 2013.Picture courtesy of Cathy Hengstrom
DIOSDADO MACAPAGAL & PURITA DELA ROSA: "A Love Story Thru War, Poverty and Illness", by Ria Salgado-Llanes, PDI. Northern Luzon, 14 February 2007.
VIRGILIO RODRIGUEZ
& CARMELING DEL ROSARIO: www.manilacarnivals.blogspot/com, Picture from Pampanga Social Register 1933
NINOY AQUINO &
CORY AQUINO, Tantingco, Robby P. Singsing Magazine, Picture from Bob Rzaon, A Life Devoted to Salon Photography
LINDA & BET
LANSANGAN: Wedding anniversary program of Erlinda Castro and Silvestre
Lansangan.
LOLO PULONG: Garcia,
J. Neil C. Performing the Self: Occasional Prose. University of the Philippines,
2003. (also P
