Valerie Concepcion. Image: Screengrab from YouTube/GMA Network
Valerie Concepcion got emotional as she looked back at the time that her 18-year-old daughter Heather Fiona wanted to meet her estranged father, Jeremy Carag, but to no avail.
In an interview with Boy Abunda, which aired on May 19, Concepcion said she tried “so hard” to fulfill the roles of both mother and father to her daughter, whom she gave birth to when she was only 16 and was just about starting to make a name for herself in show business.
“Teenager pa lang ako [noong] pinanganak si [Heather]. I’ve sacrificed so much for her. I had to make sure na hindi ko na-prioritize ang pagiging teenager ko [for her],” she said. “Tina-try ko so hard to be a mom and dad to her.”
(I was only a teenager when I gave birth to Heather. I’ve sacrificed so much for her. I had to make sure that I wouldn’t prioritize being a teenager for her. I tried so hard to be a mom and dad to her.)
The actress admitted feeling hurt when Heather came of age and decided to look for her father, in spite of all her efforts at becoming both parents to her daughter. Worse, she said that her daughter’s father seemed to make no effort to keep in touch with Heather.
“It pained me noong hinanap niya [si Jeremy] kasi feeling ko n’un, hindi ako enough [as a mother]. Kumbaga, hindi ko nabigay ‘yung lahat [kasi] hinanap pa niya ‘yung tatay niya,” she said.
(It pained me that she was looking for Jeremy because I felt at that time that I was not enough as a mother. It means that I didn’t give enough attention to her because she was looking for her father.)
Eventually, the actress said she understood where her daughter was coming from, that she just wanted to know more about her roots as she got older.
Concepcion claimed she did her best to reach out to Carag but she didn’t “get a response.”
“Na-realize ko rin na it doesn’t make her love me less because she looked for her father. She just really wants to know where she came from, her roots, and her full story. Now I understand,” she said.
“We tried [looking for Jeremy]. We tried. I tried telling him, ‘Our daughter is ready to meet you,’” she continued, as her voice shook while she spoke. “‘She told me she’s ready to meet you,’ but I didn’t get a response, sadly.”
(I eventually realized that it doesn’t make her love me less because she looked for her dather. She just really wants to know where she came from, her roots, and her full story. Now I understand. We tried looking for Jeremy. We tried. I tried telling him, “Our daughter is ready to meet you.” “She told me she’s ready to meet you.” But I didn’t get a response, sadly.)
During the interview, the actress did her best to advise Heather to not be mad at her father for what happened between their family. But at the same time, she said that she was carrying in her heart what her daughter must be feeling.
“Wala kasi akong control doon sa [iisipin] ni Heather. Pero kasi, hindi mo masisisi na hindi mawawala sa bata na nasaktan siya sa mga nangyari at na-disappoint siya,” she said.
(I have no control over what Heather is thinking. But at the same time, I can’t blame her for getting hurt because her current situation is painful, and she feels disappointed with what’s happening.)
Concepcion recently confirmed that she’s pregnant with her first child with non-showbiz husband, businessman Francis Sunga, earlier this month. The couple tied the knot in 2019. EDV