Angelu De Leon looks back on her first pregnancy: ‘Sana I handled everything differently’
After celebrating her 16th wedding anniversary with her non-showbiz husband Lorenzo “Wowie” Rivera earlier this month, Angelu de Leon looks back on one of the most pivotal moments in her showbiz career, which happened during her peak as one of the stars of the teen-oriented series Growing Up.
In her Facebook post last September 23, Angelu shared what she learned in hindsight after finding out she was pregnant with her first child Maria Louise Nicole with former boyfriend Joko Diaz.
“If you’ve committed a mistake, it’s to humble yourself first. Then you become strong. Up to now, hindi ko pa rin kayang panoorin iyong last episode ng Growing Up. Definitely, magbe-breakdown talaga ako. Iyong desisyon ko na i-keep ang baby ko, I know it’s for my soul at iyon ang tama para sa akin. Pero sana, I handled everything differently.”
She then detailed what happened back then. “Umalis ako nang walang sorry sa cast, kay Direk Mark (Reyes), sa mga fans na nasaktan din, at sa mga crew na naapektuhan at nawalan ng trabaho dahil sa naging desisyon ko. Noon, ang nasa isip ko, paninindigan ko ito. Gusto kong ipakita na strong ako. Pero na-realize ko kung gaano ako ka-full of pride.
“Hindi pala pagiging strong ang hindi pag-amin na nagkamali ka. Ang tunay na strength pala ay iyong kaya mong sabihin, ‘Nagkamali ako.’ Kaya mong magpakumbaba. Kaya mong humingi ng tawad. At kaya mong tanggapin na may mga bagay na sana ginawa mo nang mas maayos,” she wrote.
The 47-year-old actress, who is currently serving as a 2nd District councilor in Pasig City, admitted she could have done better than to leave the show abruptly during that time due to her unexpected condition. During that time, Angelu reprised her role as Ma. Patrice “Peachy” Real from the series T.G.I.S and was paired with her most popular love team partner Bobby Andrews, who played the role of Joaquin “Wacks” Torres III.
“Mahirap aminin, pero alam kong malaki siguro ang maaaring nabago sa situation kung iba ang naging approach ko noon. Sabi nga sa Bible, ‘When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.’ — Proverbs 11:2
“Hindi ko na mababago ang nakaraan. Pero pwede kong harapin ang pagkakamali ko, matuto mula rito, at maging mas mabuting tao moving forward.
“Kaya kung kayo man ay may pagkakamaling hanggang ngayon ay mabigat pa rin sa puso ninyo, huwag kayong matakot umamin. Magpakumbaba. Humingi ng tawad kung kinakailangan. At matutong patawarin din ang sarili. Sometimes, humility is not weakness. It is the beginning of becoming strong.”
Apart from her daughter Nicole with Joko Diaz, Angelu is also a mom to Loise, her daughter with businessman Jojo Manlongat, and to her only son Rafa, with her husband Wowie.