Mama Nena (aka Amalia Fuentes) called me “Anak.” She was like my second mom. Now that she’s gone, I comfort myself with the thought that she’s reunited in heaven with her unica hija Liezl, who was like a sister to me.
They had quite a dramatic and colorful relationship as mother and daughter. I was privy to their dramas. But after all was said and done, they loved each other, even when it did not seem to show. It was a “tough love” sort of thing.
No more dramas for them up above, just lasting peace and pure love. That thought alone somehow eases the pain of missing them both.
A few weeks before Mama Nena suffered a stroke in Korea, we had bonding time in a salon. She kept venting. Out of respect for her, I cannot divulge what she was ranting about. My heart bled for her. So if it’s any consolation, I’m glad she’s now angst-free.
I fondly remember the time Mama Nena and I had lunch at the Polo Club with Gloria Diaz and May Neri. We were like college girls gossiping about a certain woman whom Mama Nena was at odds with.
I also loved seeing her so giddy when she talked about her ex, Tito Romeo Vasquez, especially when I teased her about a possible reconciliation a few years after the demise of her longtime partner, Joey Stevens.
I remember the time Mama Nena waited for me to come home, so she could interrogate me about Liezl’s elopement with Albert Martinez. But I made sure she left already when I went home because I didn’t want to squeal on Liezl. Mama Nena used to tell my mom, “The lives of Liezl and Dolly seem scripted because Dolly gave birth in September, and Liezl gave birth in December of the same year.”
Among the many “Amalia-isms” she left me with, this one stands out in my memory: It is not a sin to be born poor, but it is a sin to die poor because you wasted your life by not striving harder.
Her rags-to-riches story as a ’60s movie queen is proof that she practiced what she preached.
Even in your absence, I still feel your presence. Thank you for loving me like your own. You live inside my heart, Mama Nena dearest!
PERSONAL: Damo guid nga salamat to my cool migo, Emil Po, for the nightcap at his hip resort Lime Boracay and for the sumptuous treat in Shine, the only authentic Chinese resto in Boradise. Super thanks to Ms Sienna Shang for accommodating me and my friends at her famous resto. And thanks a mil to Bryan Yanne and Annie Latoza for their kind assistance.